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

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book General > News

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 10-26-2009, 10:49 AM   #1
geneaber
Connoisseur
geneaber doesn't littergeneaber doesn't litter
 
Posts: 82
Karma: 118
Join Date: Dec 2005
Device: Kindle 2
Price Wars/ E-Book Cost

In light of the announcement of the Nook, I started wondering -- how much does Amazon or B & N typically pay for an e-book? If they sell it for $9.99 how much do they pay to the publisher?
geneaber is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 11:01 AM   #2
weedfreak
Addict
weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.weedfreak can program the VCR without an owner's manual.
 
weedfreak's Avatar
 
Posts: 302
Karma: 185297
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Ankh Morpork
Device: calibre
I think it was recently reported that they pay $1.50, which is why they are reportedly making $31 million this year just from ebooks, It is also why I am not buying anything from them, I do not support parasites but prefer to buy direct from authors and publishers who can get a better deal by selling cheaper direct to readers.
weedfreak is offline   Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 10-26-2009, 11:12 AM   #3
pdurrant
The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠
pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
pdurrant's Avatar
 
Posts: 71,410
Karma: 305065800
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Norfolk, England
Device: Kindle Voyage
Amazon pays small publishers and self-publishers 35% of the list price of the ebook. Amazon probably pays large publishers 50% of the list price of the ebook.

Smashwords, on the other hand, pays publishers 85% of the list price. Of course, this means that at Smashwords, the list price is the price customers pay, while at Amazon ebooks are often discounted by 20%, 40% or more.

Quote:
Originally Posted by geneaber View Post
In light of the announcement of the Nook, I started wondering -- how much does Amazon or B & N typically pay for an e-book? If they sell it for $9.99 how much do they pay to the publisher?
pdurrant is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 11:19 AM   #4
geneaber
Connoisseur
geneaber doesn't littergeneaber doesn't litter
 
Posts: 82
Karma: 118
Join Date: Dec 2005
Device: Kindle 2
Wide discrepancy in answer ($1.50 vs. 35%-50% of list). Anyone know which is correct?

The next question becomes -- is the list price for an ebook the same as that for a hardcover?
geneaber is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 11:37 AM   #5
Direct Ebooks
Hibernian eBook Warrior
Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.Direct Ebooks is no ebook tyro.
 
Direct Ebooks's Avatar
 
Posts: 184
Karma: 1264
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Cork, Ireland
Device: Sony Reader
Amazon does pay publishers the quoted percentage. The 1.50 is nonsense.

Other distributors generally pay the publishers a little more. Publishers can set the srp and typicall take 50%+ of this figure, irrespective of whether the retailer applies any discounts.
Direct Ebooks is offline   Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 10-26-2009, 11:44 AM   #6
geneaber
Connoisseur
geneaber doesn't littergeneaber doesn't litter
 
Posts: 82
Karma: 118
Join Date: Dec 2005
Device: Kindle 2
Quote:
Originally Posted by Direct Ebooks View Post
Amazon does pay publishers the quoted percentage. The 1.50 is nonsense.

Other distributors generally pay the publishers a little more. Publishers can set the srp and typicall take 50%+ of this figure, irrespective of whether the retailer applies any discounts.
So is the list price for an ebook the same as for a Hardcover?
geneaber is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 11:47 AM   #7
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 geneaber View Post
So is the list price for an ebook the same as for a Hardcover?
Often times the list price is the same as the latest paper release. So if it's just out in HC then it has a HC list, if it's out as a Mass Market PB then that's the list, if it's re-issued as a trade PB then sometimes the ebooks list goes up to match that. This isn't of course true for all publishers, but it is for most of the biggies. In the UK I've noticed sometimes the list is higher than the HC.
AnemicOak is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 12:55 PM   #8
pdurrant
The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠
pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
pdurrant's Avatar
 
Posts: 71,410
Karma: 305065800
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Norfolk, England
Device: Kindle Voyage
The list price for an ebook is whatever the publisher says it is.

Some publishers price an ebook at the same price as the cheapest paper edition - so the same as the hardcover until the paperback appears.

Some publishers price an ebooks at a higher price than the paperback - sometimes twice as much.

Some publishers price ebooks at less than the cheapest paper edition.

Quote:
Originally Posted by geneaber View Post
So is the list price for an ebook the same as for a Hardcover?
pdurrant is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 03:20 PM   #9
Kali Yuga
Professional Contrarian
Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Kali Yuga's Avatar
 
Posts: 2,045
Karma: 3289631
Join Date: Mar 2009
Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie
The $1.50 price is wrong, at least for new titles.

I may be wrong but my understanding is it's not based on a percentage. The publisher sets a wholesale price, and the retailer goes from there. For brand-new books (what would normally be a hardcover) the wholesale price is $10 or more; so ebook retailers occasionally lose money on the $9.99 ebook.

IIRC someone at Amazon (possibly Bezos) stated that some ebooks are loss leaders, but so are some of the big hardcovers, especially with the current price war.
Kali Yuga is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 03:47 PM   #10
Hellmark
Wizard
Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Hellmark ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Hellmark's Avatar
 
Posts: 2,549
Karma: 3799999
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: O'Fallon, Missouri, USA
Device: Nokia N800, PRS-505, Nook STR Glowlight, Kindle 3
Quote:
Originally Posted by weedfreak View Post
I think it was recently reported that they pay $1.50, which is why they are reportedly making $31 million this year just from ebooks, It is also why I am not buying anything from them, I do not support parasites but prefer to buy direct from authors and publishers who can get a better deal by selling cheaper direct to readers.
That figure is how much they pay on average. Some they pay more for, namely best sellers.
Hellmark is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 03:53 PM   #11
calvin-c
Guru
calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.calvin-c ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 787
Karma: 1575310
Join Date: Jul 2009
Device: Moon+ Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kali Yuga View Post
The $1.50 price is wrong, at least for new titles.

I may be wrong but my understanding is it's not based on a percentage. The publisher sets a wholesale price, and the retailer goes from there. For brand-new books (what would normally be a hardcover) the wholesale price is $10 or more; so ebook retailers occasionally lose money on the $9.99 ebook.

IIRC someone at Amazon (possibly Bezos) stated that some ebooks are loss leaders, but so are some of the big hardcovers, especially with the current price war.
I think you misunderstood where the percentage is applied. You're right-Amazon doesn't pay a percentage, they pay whatever the publisher demands. But if I understand what was said about the percentage correctly, the publisher sets their wholesale price-what Amazon pays-at a percentage of their suggested retail price. And (according to earlier statements in this thread) that percentage is 35-50%. But it's of the publisher's srp-not of what Amazon actually sells the book for. (And, just as Amazon will offer loss-leaders, so might publishers. I don't really know about that. These days it would make sense that even wholesalers would pay attention to marketing-but so many publishers seem to live so far back in the past that I won't count on that.)
calvin-c is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 04:51 PM   #12
Kali Yuga
Professional Contrarian
Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Kali Yuga ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Kali Yuga's Avatar
 
Posts: 2,045
Karma: 3289631
Join Date: Mar 2009
Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie
Quote:
Originally Posted by calvin-c View Post
I think you misunderstood where the percentage is applied. You're right-Amazon doesn't pay a percentage, they pay whatever the publisher demands.
I think that makes me right, then.

It's possible the publisher does have a formula that is related to the list price, which in turn bears little relation to what the retailer actually charges. They may also lower the wholesale price for back catalog items without changing the list price, I'm not really sure. Pricing is hardly an exact science though. I guess someone in the industry will have to spill the beans.


Quote:
Originally Posted by calvin-c
These days it would make sense that even wholesalers would pay attention to marketing-but so many publishers seem to live so far back in the past that I won't count on that.)
I know that's a popular view, but I disagree that the publishers are backwards -- no more or less than artists or consumers who refuse to go digital. The main issue is that they don't want to see their margins erode and their products devalued. But I think a lot of the industry believes that digital will overtake print in 10 years or less, most major publishers are putting out ebooks faster than they do paperbacks (which are in the same price range as the ebooks), and many are on board with things like POD, so I don't think they're quite as backwards as most people think.
Kali Yuga is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2009, 08:23 PM   #13
fugazied
Wizard
fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.fugazied once ate a cherry pie in a record 7 seconds.
 
fugazied's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,305
Karma: 1958
Join Date: Jan 2009
Device: iPod Touch
Quote:
Originally Posted by pdurrant View Post
The list price for an ebook is whatever the publisher says it is.
And that is why all of the conjecture about price is a bit baseless. However if they sell ebooks in similar ways to paperbacks, the $9.99 titles probably don't have as much markup but obtain profit via sheer volume (eg. $9.99 on popular titles form large publishers).

I think given the sheer practicalities of storing and shipping an ebook and often skipping a middle man wholesaler/retailer they would HAVE to be more profitable than traditional paperbacks (perhaps not as much as hardcovers which have an often ludicrous markup).
fugazied is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-27-2009, 09:21 AM   #14
pdurrant
The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠
pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.pdurrant ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
pdurrant's Avatar
 
Posts: 71,410
Karma: 305065800
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Norfolk, England
Device: Kindle Voyage
By skipping most middle-men, Baen Books sell their ebooks for $6, and make more than from a paperback, but a bit less than from a hardback. (Well, the actual info I had was that the author royalty on an ebook is more than from a paperback and less than from a hardback, but I think it's safe to assume that the same applies to the publisher's cut.)

Quote:
Originally Posted by fugazied View Post
I think given the sheer practicalities of storing and shipping an ebook and often skipping a middle man wholesaler/retailer they would HAVE to be more profitable than traditional paperbacks (perhaps not as much as hardcovers which have an often ludicrous markup).
pdurrant 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
Free Book - Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith #4: Savior koland Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 3 04-30-2010 09:35 PM
Why doesn't the price of an E-book reflect the price of a paperback book? t-town News 7 02-24-2010 11:44 AM
Ars Technica: The e-book wars of 2010 wallcraft News 4 01-09-2010 12:44 AM
Freebie: Star Wars: Legacy of the Force, Book 1 Alexander Turcic Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 49 05-19-2008 11:18 AM
Carpet Wars, and Meditation book gvtexas Reading Recommendations 0 03-30-2003 02:11 AM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 06:01 AM.


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