[Sil_liS]

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

It's a little more complicated than that. There are two reasons for purchasing hardcovers. One is a durable long term reading copy. The other is fast access.

The PBs that I bought so far are holding up as much as the HCs. My grandparents have PBs bought in their youth and they are still in good condition after being read by three generations. I don't know what you do with your books that you consider hardcover binding to be essential to durability.

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

The primary market for hardcovers is libraries and collectors. Some hardcovers sell well beyond that, and those are the ones where "read it NOW" comes into play.

And how does this affect my point?

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

Correct, though print/bind/warehouse/distribute amount to perhaps 20% of the cost of a title. Reserve against returns goes away, too, but that will vary by title: the more copies you produce, the more can be potentially returned, so reserves for a title you have high hopes for and order a large initial printing will be rather more than reserves for a title you expect average sales from.

That is 20% less on the publisher's side. There should also be a smaller cost on the distributor's side.

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

Increasingly less of a factor as prices drop.

But unless you will be able to get an ereader for free, they will still imply an expense.

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

Depending upon which reader you use, you can lend an ebook: the B&N nook has a lending feature where you may load an ebook on your device to a friend with another nook for a two week period. Like a physical book, if you loan it in this manner, you don't have it while it's on loan. The mechanism that supports the loan feature disables your access to the book while it's loaned out.

Depending on which reader you use you will need more than one or risk being limited to only one store.

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

I question how large a percentage of the readership resells or takes deductions on lending. I don't, for the most part, see those factors as part of the decision to buy a particular title in the first place. We buy the books we want to read. Resale and/or tax deduction come later, if at all.

So what if it comes later? The option is there, and it is part of the value of the book.

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

I don't think anyone here thinks they shouldn't. The questions are "How much lower?" and "When?"

Actually the question would be how they can add to the value of the book to justify a higher price. What we need is a wider price range for a title, and everyone will be happy.