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06-26-2014, 09:07 AM | #16 |
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If the POD clause is true then the publishers could also allow small bookstores to do the same. The small bookstores could then have an effective inventory as large as that as the big retailers. Any book the customer wanted could be printed right there. Wouldn't this negate some of Amazon advantage of it's large warehouses?
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06-26-2014, 10:05 AM | #17 |
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Problems w/ POD:
- requires that the source files be available and print-ready, complying w/ a very narrow set of file requirements (margins are an especial bugaboo) --- not a big deal for a novel, but a deal breaker for glossy books, and a serious potential security issue - unable to support special effects such as embossing, die cuts, foil, varnish, &c. - binding is lowest-common-denominator adhesive So, any customer that wants to get out of such need merely design their books (and files) so that they require printing features which Amazon's print-on-demand can't meet. |
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06-26-2014, 10:24 AM | #18 | |
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Companies make unreasonable demands in contract negotiations. It's being portrayed as only Amazon making unreasonable demands and I don't believe that. It could just as easily have played out that Hachette will not accept anything except an agency model so Amazon is saying "ok if that's what you want then you'll have to pay us for the value add that we're providing above and beyond your other 'agents'". I'm not going to make a decision on who is more evil in this case without knowing all the facts, and all the facts aren't available. |
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06-26-2014, 10:33 AM | #19 |
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Neither side is being "evil" - to even use that word is rather silly, IMHO. Both sides are simply trying to achieve an outcome that's best for their business.
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06-26-2014, 10:42 AM | #20 | |
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All major retailers have agreements with wholesalers limiting their ability to sell to other retailers at a lower cost. They also have agreements preventing the wholesaler from selling the items to the general public for less than the retailers. Apache |
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06-26-2014, 10:46 AM | #21 | |
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I agree. POD can be a great option, but forcing POD on all books could hurt reputation and value or drag all books down to those LCDs. |
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06-26-2014, 10:50 AM | #22 | |
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At least that's how I use it, and find it be a useful and concise bit of hyperbole. Downright pithy. |
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06-26-2014, 10:53 AM | #23 | |
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I don't recall seeing that in my KDP info. That would mean I couldn't offer a Smashwords coupon or other promotion. I'll have to double check. |
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06-26-2014, 11:00 AM | #24 | |
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Until the dickering stops and we see what they end up with we can't even begin to tell if anything bad is going on. But the ADS camp acts as if Amazon were automatically in the wrong just for asking for something. As if they should be happy to take whatever scraps the publisher deems appropriate. BOGU negotiations? Not Amazon. Unlike authors tied to tradpub contracts, they don't have to grin and bear it. |
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06-26-2014, 11:04 AM | #25 | |
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Baen (still) has a Direct sales presence. They needed to adjust their retail pricing to allow for other (new) avenues of distribution. |
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06-26-2014, 11:12 AM | #26 | |
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It looks like a "trust but verify" thing. Backstab insurance. |
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06-26-2014, 11:36 AM | #27 |
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Self-published is a completely different issue. You are letting Amazon be your publisher basically and to do so you have to accept their terms.
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06-26-2014, 11:43 AM | #28 | |
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06-26-2014, 12:01 PM | #29 | |
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Amazon is just a distributor. They don't pay royalties but rather charge distribution fees. That is why they have a bandwidth charge and separate contracts for Audible and Createspace. The IP rights stay with the author (or small publishing house), not Amazon, and unless the publisher of record chooses to sign up with KDP select (on a 90 days basis) the publisher can unilaterally end the contract at a moment's notice. It is also why an indie can choose to distribute through other channels (Nook, Kobo, iTunes, Smashwords, XinXii, etc) in parallel to Kindle or choose to go exclusive with KDP Select. Controlling the IP is what separates indies from tradpub authors. (And price matching is not limited to indies.) Last edited by fjtorres; 06-26-2014 at 12:04 PM. |
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06-26-2014, 12:07 PM | #30 |
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There are enough contractual issues floating around in this question that I might use it to write my next final exam.
As to the NDAs, I would be interested to know if they actually have an NDA just to cover the contract negotiations. I know what sort of things happen here in terms of evidentiary law, but I am simply curious to know how Amazon treats these sorts of meetings. I wonder if signing an NDA is part of your ticket to even to get to the table. Do parties even have a choice? As to the contract itself, there is a difference to me in leverage and in something that is patently unfair or signed under what would be termed duress. Does Hachette have any other option besides Amazon? It would be hard to show duress here as would the issue of fairness. The print on demand option is the most troublesome issue for me because I, as a consumer, would believe I had been sent the wrong thing were I to get a cheaply bound paperback when I ordered a deckle-edged hardcover. I think that presents a real issue of material change in what is provided. Publishers would be right to challenge as it could materially harm a publisher's business if that copy of the book would be held out as the publisher's own. (Might be nice for brick and mortars though who DO have the nice copy in stock). |
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