Quote:
Originally Posted by Sparrow
Isn't that called 'taking a shower'?
Publishers seem more worried about taking a bath.
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Most of the arguments above seem to suggest that the availability and distribution of e-books should be considered in terms of "fairness," not simply "cost," as clearly the economics of e-books do not fit current physical product and distribution models well, and they do not benefit all parties equally.
Further, they bolster my opinion that the legal status of e-books must be considered in terms of being a broadcast product, like a TV show, as opposed to a physical product like a book. This allows the questions to be seen in a different light, a light already studied and established by broadcast producers, the FCC (and similar foreign regulators) and local governments.
This, for instance, allows a producer to distribute/broadcast (or, in this case, "tightcast") their product to a paid customer, and that customer is free to make their own copies for private use... but they do not have the right to redistribute or "tightcast" the product to others, especially for profit. It also means that the owner of one version of the product (say, a book) is not necessarily allowed to have another version (an e-book) for free, unless a specific prior arrangement has been made.
The iTunes model essentially follows this concept, with some slight variations, and I think as a whole, it works well. The iTunes system basically uses their SW on your PC as a cable TV station uses a "cable box" to regulate what you can and cannot see, prevent re-distribution, and track usage and cost. Amazon's Kindle system does this, with the Kindle itself acting as the "cable box" and the viewer. Both systems can also provide local control (they are capable of restricting access to content, depending on location determined by IP or cellular location data).
We're already on the way to working out a system that will be fair to all (or, at least, most) and therefore effective overall. An effective system will curtail piracy bit by bit, until it won't be a concern to anyone.