Quote:
Originally Posted by poohbear_nc
One question to really consider now, given these figures, is: what would happen to the ebook market if Amazon began offering ePub format books, and followed B&N's supposed plan for enabling their DRM for other readers, and enabled Kindle DRM for non-Kindle readers?
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Well, no: it's not a question that requires much consideration, actually. Amazon is simply not going to offer ePub DRM content on its Kindle platform or to its customers. It has no incentive to do so and much incentive NOT to do so. Right now, buying from Amazon is a breeze: one format. Why complicate this with Beta, VHS, HD DVD and Blu-ray?
I am struck by Debbi Mack's experience with her first novel,
Identity Crisis. According to her blog, she's sold 5,600 copies on Amazon (all Kindle) and 84 on Smashwords, the supposed friendly home of indie publishing. JA Konrath made a similar comment about selling on Amazon ... his books are really moving: he claims 5,000 copies of his books sold on Amazon in the first 18 days of July and a hefty 70% royalty rate.
The only segment missing out on Kindle ebooks are libraries, almost all of whom use the Overdrive system and mainly offer DRM ePub. It's not hard to believe Amazon's business development folks are working hard to get Kindle ebooks on offer there as well. With that in place, ePub becomes pretty much just another format without a key differentiator.