Quote:
Originally Posted by jtdolphins
Maybe, just maybe, the ads could work. I just don't see how they could get enough clicks. I probably wouldn't go for them, but things change. Do people actually click on ads that are flashing on a webpage?
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That's pretty much my thought. I haven't seen any suggestions of how to make ads *inside* ebooks (as opposed to "somehow inflicted on the reading device") make enough money for the advertiser to convince them to pay for a notable amount of the book's cost.
Given the array of devices ebooks are read on, ranging from 3" phones to 5" black-and-white e-ink to 10" tablets to personal computers, an ad would either have to work across all venues--or only be attached to ebooks sold for one type of device, sharply limiting the customer base.
The *idea* of ads isn't too bad, although a lot of us have kneejerk reactions against them because our first thoughts are always the worst ones we've seen. But the practical side has some pretty substantial problems, and none of the proponents of ads-in-ebooks have come up with a solution that's not "ad-based ebook customers will only buy from specific locations and read on approved devices."
It's also not clear if the agency pricing clusterf**k allows for the same book at a different price "with adverts"--can a publisher sell books at B&N for $13, but through the iBookstore for $8-with-rotating-ads?
An ad in an ebook isn't like an ad at the front page of a print book... you don't see it every time you open the book. Unless the programming's changed to force you to look at it again, it's a page-click to get past, and that's all. To make ads show up on every page, like the top corner, you need ebook formats that support that--and a way to not ruin the reading experience for people already on tiny screens.
I suspect advertisers & publishers will continue to try to figure out how to inflict ads on ebooks, and continue to fail to do so on any large commercial basis. Any ad minor enough to be non-intrusive to reading, lacks the ability to inspire sales that will convince the advertiser to pay for the book.