MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - eBooks from Waterstones.com longer selling eBooks outside of the UK and Eire

Kali Yuga · 11-03-2010, 08:30 AM

*sigh*

The primary issue here is contractual. Namely, the publishers have contracts WITH AUTHORS that restrict where the book can be sold.

If a publisher hauls off and internationally distributes a book without the permission of the author, it's a violation of the contract. Authors, in turn, may not want to fork over international rights to a single publisher, who may not be willing or able to put a lot of work into promoting the book abroad; or the author may want to use "international rights" as a negotiating tool to get a better royalty rate and/or advance.

This problem almost certainly will get resolved, but unless you support wide-spread trampling of author's rights and violations of contracts, it will not happen overnight.

Good to see that y'all support an author's rights and contracts only so long as it doesn't inconvenience you.

11-03-2010, 08:30 AM	#82
Kali Yuga Professional Contrarian Posts: 2,045 Karma: 3289631 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie	sigh The primary issue here is contractual. Namely, the publishers have contracts WITH AUTHORS that restrict where the book can be sold. If a publisher hauls off and internationally distributes a book without the permission of the author, it's a violation of the contract. Authors, in turn, may not want to fork over international rights to a single publisher, who may not be willing or able to put a lot of work into promoting the book abroad; or the author may want to use "international rights" as a negotiating tool to get a better royalty rate and/or advance. This problem almost certainly will get resolved, but unless you support wide-spread trampling of author's rights and violations of contracts, it will not happen overnight. Good to see that y'all support an author's rights and contracts only so long as it doesn't inconvenience you.