Quote:
Originally Posted by Worldwalker
I don't think the forced increase in ebook prices increased ebook sales. It may have shifted some of those sales to Amazon from other retailers, but as a general rule, as prices go up, sales go down.
|
Given many of your other posts, Worldwalker, I am surprised you don't take the next step. "Fine. Charge $14.99 for the latest ebook. I'll spend $14.99 ... but on three other books at $4.99. With so many books to choose from, I can afford to wait until the the $14.99 comes down in price. Life is short. I'll read something else in the meantime."
In others words, as prices go up, consumers find alternatives to their dollars. Sales only go down for the items viewed as "too expensive". The publishers catering to high end will see lower sales; the value conscious publishers will benefit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EowynCarter
Sony won the war when they ditched their proprietary crap to get to epub, and they do sell outside US  |
Hmmm. Ok. But I think you'd be hard pressed to find any facts to prove your argument. Other than lowering prices of existing inventory, Sony has taken no significant steps to expand its product line, e-book store, or territory in 2010. And this has been a very busy year for the category. In fact, the evidence suggests Sony is treading water and may even abandon or sell off the entire ebook division.
Quote:
Originally Posted by HamsterRage
I wonder if we are starting towards the tipping point, where ebook sales are going to start to overshadow pbook sales? And, if so how much longer it will take before the whole industry shifts and the big publishers find their best authors moving to "self" publishing?
|
Amazon made no claims that ebooks were threatening pbooks. As several others have rushed to point out, ebooks represent a tiny fraction of pbook sales. That's not going to change soon.
It is possible a handful of "best authors" may ditch their "big publishers" ... greed turns up everywhere. Publishers fulfil very important functions in the book industry eco-system and are not likely to be replaced. But publishers also will need to evolve their business models to survive and thrive.
Quote:
Originally Posted by =X=
Amazon is winning and has been winning because they've focused on a few key times-- The largest collection of books and price. They also focus on making their kindle an excellent reading experience ... The last point, and kind of implied already, is Amazon is very agile, and adjust to the market very quickly.
|
Well put. Amazon's market execution, and agility to adapt as needed, is only matched by its larger vision of where the market will be before it gets there. The moment Amazon figured out that Kindle was a platform and not a device, and that books were sold on the basis of interaction with other readers ... hence the insistence on user reviews and always on 3G capability ... they took the lead. No one else, not even Apple, has so many pieces in place. Amazon's single-minded focus on outstanding customer experience -- in the sales process, in returns, in hardware design, in integrating mutli-platforms -- is a corporate asset that will provide great advantage over many other market players in the days ahead.