Are you a paying subscriber to Kindle Unlimited/Scribd/Oyster?

[taosaur]

Scribd could definitely be worthwhile if pulp fiction is your main entertainment on a consistent basis or if some combination of their offerings made it a decent value proposition. Specifically, they offer a pretty good value on Random House titles if you don't re-read and are content with LCD.

Honestly, I don't expect Scribd to last. They got beyond that initial venture capital stage, which is laudable enough, but they have a less than fleshed out business model that they're struggling to make stick. I would love to see them prove me wrong on general principle, but it seems unlikely.

[pidgeon92]

I don't subscribe to any ebook services, but I just found out about Texture yesterday, a magazine subscription service. They have a lot of magazines available, including the only magazine I currently subscribe to (People, it's a guilty pleasure). They are offering a three-month trial for $10 for the holidays.

I downloaded the app yesterday, as did my husband, and it's pretty good. It could use some more features, like user profiles so I don't have to see my husband's favorites list intermingled with mine.

[Xianxia]

2014 KDP Select (self-publishers) payout for Kindle Unlimited

$2.785 million
$4.7 million
$5 million
$5.5 million
$6.5 million
$7.25 million

2015 KDP Select (self-publishers) payout for Kindle Unlimited

$8.50 million
$8.00 million (28 days February)
$9.30 million
$9.80 million
$10.8 million
$11.3 million
$11.5 million
$11.8 million
$12.0 million
$12.4 million
$12.7 million

The important thing to note is that the trend is on the up and up and this is just for self-publishers. Amazon doesn't mention what the monthly amount for other publishers that enrolled

[Graycee]

I tried a free trial of KU with plans to cancel after the first month. I ended up adding a bunch of books to my wishlist so I'm continuing my subscription for a few months.

[Bookworm_Girl]

I had an Oyster subscription for ~18 months. The cost of the books that I read was more than double the cost of the subscription. Therefore I don't mind that I don't get to keep the books, especially since it's rare for me to reread books. I read mostly BPH - both fiction and nonfiction. I like the way the subscription services are organized such that you can easily browse books via sub-genre lists and see "similar to" recommendations. It has really helped me to discover new books and broadened my reading.

Since Oyster is shutting down, I recently switched to Scribd. It has a smaller selection than Oyster but more than enough to keep me reading for a very long time! I am not a romance reader, and I have plenty of other sources for audiobooks. Therefore those recent controversies don't bother me. I am intrigued by the sheet music availability but haven't explored it yet. I am pleased that Scribd has improved their presentation since the last time that I tested it.

Kindle Unlimited doesn't interest me yet. There is not enough selection for my interests to justify the subscription price. I prefer to read on my Kindle but don't mind reading in the Scribd app on my iPad.

[Xianxia]

Is Scribd profitable if a subscriber read 2 books a month since Scribd pays full royalties on a borrow like a purchase?

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by Xianxia

Is Scribd profitable if a subscriber read 2 books a month since Scribd pays full royalties on a borrow like a purchase?

It probably depends on the book. Not all of them are priced the same. They can range from free on up. Most probably fall in the 7.99 range from the big publishers, while indie books probably average more like 2.99 to 3.99.

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

Since Oyster is shutting down, I recently switched to Scribd. It has a smaller selection than Oyster but more than enough to keep me reading for a very long time!

I found Scribd and Oyster to have nearly identical collections in the fantasy/SF/horror genres that I mostly read. Scribd also has many graphic novels, travel guides and technical books that Oyster lacked. I don't read romance or listen to audiobooks so Scribd's reduction of that content didn't affect me.

I recently looked into a new e-lending service, Playster. They offer multiple media types for $25/month or just books (including audiobooks) for $10/month. Their collection is much smaller than Scribd, about a quarter of the size for the books of interest to me. Their reading app is also very slow to change pages. I can't recommend it.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by jhowell

I found Scribd and Oyster to have nearly identical collections in the fantasy/SF/horror genres that I mostly read. Scribd also has many graphic novels, travel guides and technical books that Oyster lacked. I don't read romance or listen to audiobooks so Scribd's reduction of that content didn't affect me.

I recently looked into a new e-lending service, Playster. They offer multiple media types for $25/month or just books (including audiobooks) for $10/month. Their collection is much smaller than Scribd, about a quarter of the size for the books of interest to me. Their reading app is also very slow to change pages. I can't recommend it.

Playster is yet another reading subscription app that won't let you try the reading app without registering. If I don't like the app now, I lose my free month trial. If the app improves in the future I won't be able to try it again. This is why I never tried Oyster. I try Scribd every once in a while, but the formatting options weren't good for me. I tried it again just now and the new formatting options still weren't available, at least not without signing up. I still couldn't choose a font except for the default serif or sans serif.

[Katsunami]

No, and I never will be. I don't read enough to make it worthwhile, and I want to actually own the books I read. (It was the same with movies, but for some reason, I just suddenly don't feel like that anymore, except for my absolute favorites.)

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

I try Scribd every once in a while, but the formatting options weren't good for me. I tried it again just now and the new formatting options still weren't available, at least not without signing up. I still couldn't choose a font except for the default serif or sans serif.

Scribd has six font choices, but you need to use the iOS or Android app to access them. It works well for me, but I'm not too picky.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by jhowell

Scribd has six font choices, but you need to use the iOS or Android app to access them. It works well for me, but I'm not too picky.

Only two font choices here - The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick. On my Samsung Tab S using the Android app.

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

Only two font choices here - The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick. On my Samsung Tab S using the Android app.

That is odd. I see six choices for the same book on my Nexus 7. (See attached.) I have version 4.0.1 (Nov 30, 2015) of the Scribd app installed.

I know that when Scribd added the new fonts they had to update each book to include them, so if you downloaded that book a long time ago you will need to delete it from the app and de-download it.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by jhowell

That is odd. I see six choices for the same book on my Nexus 7. (See attached.) I have version 4.0.1 (Nov 30, 2015) of the Scribd app installed.

I know that when Scribd added the new fonts they had to update each book to include them, so if you downloaded that book a long time ago you will need to delete it from the app and de-download it.

I don't have a Scribd subscription, I downloaded and installed the app today. Maybe they don't give all the options if you don't subscribe. That would be pretty stupid - I want to try it before I subscribe. I contacted Scribd support last year or so and nothing ever came of it.

[GeoffR]

I checked (in retrospect) how many of the 140 ebooks I read last year are available at:

Ebook sellers: 140
Public library: 56 (OverDrive: 38 + BorrowBox: 18)
Scribd: 34 (24 of these were available from the public library too)
Kindle Unlimited: 0

(Edit: I don't subscribe to Scribd or Kindle Unlimited.)