One Store to Rule Them All? or: Can Anyone Stop Amazon ?

[soulfuldog]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

You can find it here, among other places: http://www.mediabistro.com/ebooknews...-in-2010_b5638

Thanks for that link, it's just the figures I read elsewhere aren't similar? The US is by far the biggest consumer of e-books, but if the entire global market is worth around $900m from that link, how does that compare with the US figure supposedly being $400m. Even if that figure is incorrect, if places places like South Korea, Japan & the UK all have pretty healthy sales, it would seem highly unlikely that the US share is quite so high?

The link I read was at thebookseller.com

[anamardoll]

I didn't say there was anything wrong with the word "ladies". I do object to the context of using the word to address everyone in the thread. And then suggesting a derogatory term as an alternative when someone pointed out the problem.

Context, people. It matters.

[Kumabjorn]

But I was only addressing the females in the thread.

[BillSmithBooks]

Originally Posted by avantman42

It works on Linux if you have a Kindle registered to your account (I run Ubuntu and Fedora, and it works on both for me). I guess if you don't have a Kindle then they don't give you the option, since it's intended to be used to give you a file that you can sideload to the Kindle.

Quick question regarding downloading files to Linux for transfer to your Kindle device:

Does Amazon let you download a de-DRMd file so you can transfer to your Kindle (and if de-DRMd, readable by FBReader or other ebook readers)?

Or does the Kindle device have some kind of DRM-ID detector inside it to decrypt a DRM-d file?

With Linux, you can read in Kindle Cloud via Firefox version 7 or higher (possibly Firefox 6) if Chrome is not your thing. (I use Puppy Linux 5.25 running off a Live-CD with a Firefox 7 .pet add-on with no problems at all).

(I can also read Google cloud books with this setup as well. B&N, Kobo, Feedbooks and most other DRMd sites are prettymuch uninterested in my money with this setup.)

[avantman42]

Originally Posted by BillSmithBooks

Quick question regarding downloading files to Linux for transfer to your Kindle device:

Does Amazon let you download a de-DRMd file so you can transfer to your Kindle (and if de-DRMd, readable by FBReader or other ebook readers)?

Or does the Kindle device have some kind of DRM-ID detector inside it to decrypt a DRM-d file?

You get the same file as would have been delivered to the Kindle. If it's a DRM'd book, the file you download will have DRM. Amazon DRM files are keyed to a particular device, so when you choose the "download & transfer via USB" option, it'll ask you which device you'll be transferring it to.

[emellaich]

The interesting thing about Amazon ... their net income last year was 631 Million USD ( Google Finance ). Included in that was the $1 Billion in revenue they made from selling advertising ( WebProNews ). I imagine their advertising was very high profit. Then add in 30% on independently published ebooks. Consider the money they make from Amazon stores where someone else provides the product and they provide a link to the listing. This is almost like more advertising income.

Bottom line, is that it appears that Amazon breaks-even or loses money on most of the stuff they sell. It's almost like they treat low priced stuff as marketing cost to get people to their web site. Once they have the eyeballs there, they make money by steering them to advertisers, affiliated stores, and other similar arrangements.

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by emellaich

The interesting thing about Amazon ... their net income last year was 631 Million USD ( Google Finance ). Included in that was the $1 Billion in revenue they made from selling advertising ( WebProNews ). I imagine their advertising was very high profit. Then add in 30% on independently published ebooks. Consider the money they make from Amazon stores where someone else provides the product and they provide a link to the listing. This is almost like more advertising income.

Bottom line, is that it appears that Amazon breaks-even or loses money on most of the stuff they sell. It's almost like they treat low priced stuff as marketing cost to get people to their web site. Once they have the eyeballs there, they make money by steering them to advertisers, affiliated stores, and other similar arrangements.

Expect that to really change this year or next year at the latest. They made a lot of big investments in 2011 and will continue to do so in 2012. They still make money on everything they sell, and obviously they take the ad revenue. And they will post big numbers soon, once the dust has settled.

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by emellaich

Bottom line, is that it appears that Amazon breaks-even or loses money on most of the stuff they sell. It's almost like they treat low priced stuff as marketing cost to get people to their web site. Once they have the eyeballs there, they make money by steering them to advertisers, affiliated stores, and other similar arrangements.

Amazon isn't losing money on everything they sell. But Amazon does have low margins on everything they sell...and they appear to have invested a lot of money in products like the new kindles and the kindle fire. Presumably this money will return additional profits in the next year or so.

[vaughnmr]

Originally Posted by emellaich

Bottom line, is that it appears that Amazon breaks-even or loses money on most of the stuff they sell. It's almost like they treat low priced stuff as marketing cost to get people to their web site. Once they have the eyeballs there, they make money by steering them to advertisers, affiliated stores, and other similar arrangements.

You need to look around some more. They sell a LOT of stuff, and mostly at a low price, but near the same cost as from other internet vendors. If Amazon is selling this stuff for a loss, lot of others are too.

[Penforhire]

This is not significantly different that Costco's model. They make something like half their money on annual membership fees because their margin is so low. Nothing wrong with this business model as long as the "cost of money" is low.

[ProfCrash]

I have a feeling Amazon makes a good amount of money off the Amazon Prime program. I am sure that there are people who belong to that who do not come close to spending the amount of money on shipping that they pay to be in the program.

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I have a feeling Amazon makes a good amount of money off the Amazon Prime program. I am sure that there are people who belong to that who do not come close to spending the amount of money on shipping that they pay to be in the program.

And I would like to thank those people for the subsidy!

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by scrapking

What you're suggesting is exactly what Kobo's been doing with their recent deals.

Kobo was created by, and still partnered with, the biggest bookstore chain in Canada (Chapters/Indigo/Coles). They've used that dominant retail footprint to raise Kobo from a new entrant to #1 in the Canadian market (yes, ahead of the Kindle) in e-reader ownership in Canada. I believe Canada is now the only market that Amazon's ever lost leadership in e-readers.

Kobo's reaching out to major retail players in other countries that have the reach to build the brand. In exchange for the retail shelf-space for these bricks-and-mortar stores, Kobo shares royalties on e-book sales in those countries.

So far, in addition to Chapters/Indigo in Canada, Kobo's signed up:

- WH Smith in the UK (the #1 book retailer in the UK based on number of locations),

- Swindon Book Co. in Hong Kong (I'm not sure how big they are),

- Libris Blz in the Netherlands (an alliance/buying group of independent bookstores, apparently the biggest player in book retail in that country).

They've also signed up:

- FNAC in France, a book/electronic store hybrid, and "the largest retailer of its kind in France",

- Redcoon.de (an apparently major online retailer based in Germany, but serving most of continental Europe).

There are rumours that the second-largest bookstore chain in the UK (Waterstones) might be working with B&N/Nook as well, but I haven't heard anything official yet.

It'll be interesting to see if Kobo can replicate the magic they performed in Canada. Market research firms show Kindle maintaining its cumulative marketshare (ie. growing with the market), while Kobo has rocketed up the charts at the expense of Sony and other players (whose cumulative marketshare is dropping). Canada is quickly becoming a two-horse race for e-reader sales.

But Canada has a singularly dominant bookstore player in Chapters/Indigo, not even B&N is as influential in the U.S. market as Chapters is in Canada. I think the partnerships with WHSmith and Libris Blz are very significant for Kobo, but I think these deals may provide Nook-style results (ie. strong second-place finishes) rather than Canadian results (a first place position ahead of Kindle).

One potential exception to all this: Japan. Obviously a strong market for Sony, but Rakuten (the so-called "eBay of Japan) is not to be dismissed there. The Japanese are apparently voracious readers (both books and manga). Rakuten will have to act as a disruptive force in the Japanese market as there's a bit of an oligarchy there (what the publishers/distributors are doing there makes our agency-model debate look like nothing), but there's huge potential for the Kobo brand there, and Amazon is not yet offering the Kindle there (despite attempts to do so). And whatever the book publishers do, manga will remain an opportunity there.

I love my Kobo reader...but Kobo's CS sucks. Big Time.

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

You prefer; Bitches?

Originally Posted by scrapking

I was thinking something less offensive, myself.

I'm sure I'm not the only male here, and I'm sure few/none of the women here want to be called "bitches".

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

Which is why I used the polite "Ladies".

I mean, seriously. What happened to "Family Friendly and Safe for Work"??

[cjr72]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

And I would like to thank those people for the subsidy!

You're welcome! But I order enough from Amazon that it works out well for me.

[WT Sharpe]

Love my Prime membership. Just got two packages not 20 minutes ago—both with free shipping.