Quote:
Originally Posted by mediax
All that will do is hasten the demise that bookshops fear.
I buy e-books almost exclusively, but still visit bookshops regularly and occasionally make unplanned purchases. If they charged for admission, I certainly wouldn't visit and the bookshop would lose out on even the occasional purchases I do make.
I've never understood why bookshops (the chain retailers, at least) haven't come up with some business model whereby they download ebooks for you - either direct to your reader or to a memory card/stick (the latter would no doubt raise DRM issues). I'm perfectly capable of downloading my own books, but I'd still take advantage of that sort of facility if I saw a book I fancied in a bookshop.
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Certainly! The technology is there for print on demand! Personally, if the printed books were cheap enough, I would tolerate even printing on thermal or other paper that fades after a few months. Particularly, if I could then order a permanent printed book if the book warranted such treatment.
There are logistical issues to work out, such as how you register and pay for purchases and prevent orders being abandoned, but think about getting an order scanner pen upon entering the bookstore, then as you browse and see a book you want, you just swipe the pen across the bar code. When you are ready to leave, go to the checkout counter and pick up your purchases.
I think impulse purchases would go up in such an environment. It would bring the "click to purchase" spontaneity of the web page as close as possible to a brick and mortar store.