Register Guidelines E-Books Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book General > General Discussions

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 06-19-2010, 06:15 PM   #1
BooksOnBowser
Enthusiast
BooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it is
 
Posts: 36
Karma: 2020
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Kobo Libra h2o
UK ebook prices

As a new owner of a Sony Reader Pocket Edition keen to add some books to my device I'm struck by the absurdity of e-book prices in the UK.

For example a book like "The Hand That First Held Mine" by Maggie O'Farell costs £11.04 in EPUB format from WhSmith which is exactly the same price as the hardback version, and yet there are no printing costs and the DRM means I can't loan it or sell it on.

Contrast this with say Waterstones who charge £9.09 for the book, but don't offer an ebook version and of course our good friend Amazon charging £8.48.

Never fear I thought pop across to Books On Board where I can pay in dollars, no such luck 'no format available for this title in your country'

I already have friends who think that ebooks are a great idea until they find out they cost more at which point they generally swear and lose interest!

I have no issues with paying for what I consume, and no issues with DRM, but for f's sake make it worth my while to be honest!
BooksOnBowser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-19-2010, 06:27 PM   #2
sunnysmiles
Addict
sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.sunnysmiles ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 279
Karma: 1188010
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: London
Device: I pad air, kindle pw2 and kindle touch , kindle had fire Nook pad nook
Yes I totally agree with you . I am shocked and dismayed at the pricing of Ebooks . I know how much the discounting is from Publishers to book shops as I work in one . I think the publishers are exploiting us the buyers . I have heard that some publishers are trying to be fair and charge a decent rate for their ebooks at around £ 5.99 for a novel . Other ones like Routledge which is academic are charging the full hbk price for an ebook of around £80.00 . No one in their right minds would pay that much for a digital copy excep the institutions and Libraries .
sunnysmiles is offline   Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 06-19-2010, 11:00 PM   #3
Fbone
Is that a sandwich?
Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Fbone ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 8,186
Karma: 100500000
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Nook Glowlight Plus
I just did a search for the book in US. Only Amazon has the ebook version for $9.99. Hardcover $16.50. The publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt provides both versions.

BN $18.00 and Borders $25.00 so Amazon has some type of special deal.
Fbone is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 03:34 AM   #4
velvet
Junior Member
velvet began at the beginning.
 
velvet's Avatar
 
Posts: 4
Karma: 10
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Gardena, CA
Device: none
Would it be a good price for that?
velvet is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 06:55 AM   #5
mr ploppy
Feral Underclass
mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.mr ploppy ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
mr ploppy's Avatar
 
Posts: 3,622
Karma: 26821535
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Yorkshire, tha noz
Device: 2nd hand paperback
In the UK, ebooks have VAT on them, real books don't. So anything that you would save in printing/distribution costs gets stolen by the government. If you have a friend in America, get them to buy your ebooks.
mr ploppy is offline   Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 06-20-2010, 01:19 PM   #6
obs20
Wizard
obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.obs20 ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
obs20's Avatar
 
Posts: 2,782
Karma: 29028512
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Florida
Device: Sony PRS 600, Nook ST, Toshiba Excite 10.1 AT 300
Prices vary from book to book and site to site. Just as well I check some of the UK sites when I'm looking to buy. For example I bought The Infinities by John Banville at Waterstones for 6.39GBP which is about $9.25USD and far cheaper than what was being asked by any US site.
obs20 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 04:53 PM   #7
BooksOnBowser
Enthusiast
BooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it is
 
Posts: 36
Karma: 2020
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Kobo Libra h2o
Thanks for all your replies, I suspect the real answer is 'if you can afford £159 - £259 for an ebook reader you shouldn't quibble about paying us through the nose for an ebook!'

mr ploppy is right about VAT and I tend to avoid UK sites.

I think my real beef is that if I want a normal book I just pop onto Amazon and go, I don't usually need to check whether they have a good price or not. For ebooks, I need to check three or four different permutations, UK/US £/$ before buying.

One of the great features of the iTunes store is it just works and it is what it is.

Hey I'm a glass half full kind of guy and I'm really enjoying rediscovering reading.
BooksOnBowser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 05:23 PM   #8
A_J_Lath
Zealot
A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.A_J_Lath ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
A_J_Lath's Avatar
 
Posts: 134
Karma: 200000
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: UK
Device: Computer
^^I'd recommend checking out some of the indie authors/publishers. They're usually pretty inexpensive, and sometimes free. Of course, a lot of the stuff on offer from the indies just ain't very good - but then again, the major publishers are no innocents in that respect, either. At least you're not going to feel so ripped-off by a duff indie book.
A_J_Lath is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 06:17 PM   #9
AnemicOak
Bookaholic
AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.AnemicOak ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
AnemicOak's Avatar
 
Posts: 14,391
Karma: 54969924
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Minnesota
Device: iPad Mini 4, AuraHD, iPhone XR +
Quote:
Originally Posted by BooksOnBowser View Post
I think my real beef is that if I want a normal book I just pop onto Amazon and go, I don't usually need to check whether they have a good price or not. For ebooks, I need to check three or four different permutations, UK/US £/$ before buying.
You might want to try using Inkmesh.com or ebooks.addall.com when looking.
AnemicOak is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-20-2010, 06:37 PM   #10
BooksOnBowser
Enthusiast
BooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it isBooksOnBowser knows what time it is
 
Posts: 36
Karma: 2020
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Kobo Libra h2o
Quote:
Originally Posted by AnemicOak View Post
You might want to try using Inkmesh.com or ebooks.addall.com when looking.
Cool I'll check them out.

Thanks.
BooksOnBowser is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-21-2010, 04:49 AM   #11
murraypaul
Interested Bystander
murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.murraypaul ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 3,725
Karma: 19728152
Join Date: Jun 2008
Device: Note 4, Kobo One
Quote:
Originally Posted by BooksOnBowser View Post
Never fear I thought pop across to Books On Board where I can pay in dollars, no such luck 'no format available for this title in your country'
In most cases a fake address and virtual credit card will allow you to step around such annoying restrictions. For some sites you also need an IP proxy.
murraypaul is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Book prices, Ebook prices - Value stustaff News 78 12-16-2011 07:33 PM
Ebook prices at Waterstones UK nellow Sony Reader 24 10-17-2008 05:05 PM
ebook prices HC to PB can be a problem JSWolf News 6 12-03-2007 11:29 AM
Ebook prices all over the place JSWolf Workshop 41 10-28-2007 09:16 AM
eBook prices Cybermynd News 10 09-05-2007 12:39 AM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 02:43 AM.


MobileRead.com is a privately owned, operated and funded community.