Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew H.
The Nook was the first real competition to the Kindle....
|
Actually Sony was the first big player in the market and a serious competitor long before the Nook launched. A few small stores like Fictionwise and Mobileread (bought by Amazon) were also in the market.
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Andrew H
the $9.99 price was applied to NY times bestsellers - a group of about 40 books out of the million or so books offered.
|
Amazon underpriced both Sony and B&N on a variety of titles for several years in a row.
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Andrew H
....agency pricing hasn't really reduced Amazon's marketshare (it may be 60% now), but it has driven a lot of independent competitors out of business.
|
Who was driven out of business by Amazon losing the ability to out-price them? Fictionwise? Smashwords? Scribd?
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Andrew H
Apple's claim that they were fighting an evil monopoly is basically just self-serving hot air. While I think it might be more difficult to pin price fixing on Apple as opposed to the publishers, they certainly weren't doing consumers any favors.
|
"Breaking a monopoly" and "lowering prices" are two very different things.
Setting minimum retail prices isn't automatically illegal, by the way, per
Leegin vs PSKS.
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Andrew H
They would cost exactly the same. If Amazon (or any company) is able to successfully get 90% of the market by charging low prices, they aren't going to start charging high prices and lose market share.
|
If Amazon gains 90% of the market, then B&N will go bust, and Sony will probably exit the market. If they did jack up prices, there won't be anyone
left to pick up any lost customers.
Amazon might not subsequently raise prices, but they will very likely put the squeeze on authors, self-publishers and publishers so they can increase their margins. They could also rail on new competitors, and nip the competition in the bud.
When Standard Oil was broken up, it wasn't because "consumer prices were too high," nor did the breakup necessarily result in lower consumer prices. The perceived problem was that Standard Oil was too big and put the squeeze on a whole industry. AT&T and T-Mobile's merger might have resulted in lower prices for the consumer, but would also have concentrated too much of the mobile business into a small number of companies.