Quote:
Originally Posted by Elfwreck
The average reader (that's me) has limited interest in classics, and no awareness of the differences between translations. (I know there's differences. I don't know what they are, or whose are better, nor do I care, for the most part.)
So offering a specific, modern translation alongside an older, public domain translation generally means the modern one won't sell, and is a waste of bandwidth. (Or the modern one sells--and then customers complain because they didn't see the cheaper one. Bad business, that.) It may not be worth the hassle of tracking down the copyright on the modern translation & trying to convince the owner to allow it to be placed in ebook format.
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What makes "good" editions of the classics "good" is, generally speaking, things like good introductions, footnotes, etc. That's why I have a bookshelf full of "Penguin Classics" and "Oxford World Classics" editions, even though virtually all the books are available "free".
Good though PD books are, they generally don't give you these things. I honestly think that there is a market for good commercial editions of the classics. The Penguin "Enhanced eBook" edition of "Pride and Prejudice" is an excellent example of what can be achieved if the publisher has the desire to do it right.