[Daithi]

I really like the $9.99 price point and I believe it gives the publishers a fair return. However, I don't have any problem with Baen's pricing model-- an ebook released at $15 before the hardcover, discounted to below the hardcover price when it is released, and discounted further as time goes on, and always below the print price; plus bundled pricing, etc. If the "big six" publishers had announced that they would be adopting the Baen pricing model I think you would have heard applause, but that wasn't the model the "big six" adopted.

One of the reasons that Baen is able to offer their books at these prices and do so well is that they cut out the retailer. Baen doesn't have to give Amazon a cut of the revenue, whereas the "big six" publishers selling through Amazon do have to give Amazon its share. Of course the "big six" could sell directly to the consumer, but then they lose Amazon's marketing. Plus, people like going to one site to shop and don't want to go to six sites (but nothing stopping the "big six" from creating their own ebook site -- especially if they opened it up to smaller publishers so that they didn't run into antitrust problems). If the "big six" wanted to continue selling ebooks from their site that were readable on the Kindle it would also mean that they would have to sell their versions in a DRM-Free format (Amazon use the Kindle PID in the DRM and the "big six" wouldn't have access to this info).