Quote:
Originally Posted by Fabe
Ultimately we are paying for the value of the content, not the cost of the packaging. There is no reason what-so-ever electronic books should cost less or more than a hard or paperback edition.
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Can't say I agree with you there. If that's the case, why have two prices for paperback books vs hardcovers? Content is the same but packaging is different.
I can understand why ebooks cost so much. Publishers still have to pay for the cost of producing paper books. As hardcover books fall to ebooks, the cost of producing hardcover books will even provide less profit for the publishers. I don't see this happening, but until paper books are gone, then perhaps ebooks can be cheaper since the publishers no longer have to cover the cost of making printed books.
Personally, I don't mind the following options since I know publishers still have to pay for marketing and other stuff in producing a book.
1) Charging as much as a hardcover book on release but dropping the price to paperback prices when the paperback comes out
2) Delaying the release of ebooks within a reasonable time so that the hardcovers sell
3) Charging as much as a mass paperback book.
However, I wish all ebook prices were $5.00 but I can understand the justification for higher prices. Perhaps drop it down to $5.00 after two years of the paperback release. One can hope.
The only thing I complain about is the quality of the ebooks. I've bought some ebooks that I doubt would've been able to make bookstore shelves due to the poor formatting and typos. If I pay hardcover/paperbook prices, the least I can expect for it to have the same quality as the paper versions. There is no excuse for that in my opinion.