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Originally Posted by speakingtohe
Pretty sure there won't be a gradual takeover in ebooks as with music, and it actually seemed pretty sudden to me with music.
But why? as fjtorres pointed out different demographics with ebooks than music. The majority of book buyers reads one or two a month and are adults able to and comfortable with paying the same prices for paper books. In fact many are happy to pay extra for the convenience.
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The takeover with music wasn't sudden. MP3 was first standardized in 1991. For years, the underground pushed it and the industry refused to accept it. Then came Napster in '99 and everything went haywire. I still recall the old AOL filesharing chat rooms. The music industry refused to accept digital as a viable product, because like the print industry, they wanted to sell the hard copy for more money. (Never mind the fact that you might only want to buy one or two songs but were forced to purchase an entire album.) By the time they saw the revolt and how big technology had become, it was too late for brick and mortar stores. The coming of iTunes made it so much easier for artists who might not have made a living otherwise, to do so. It made it easier for a listener to choose their favorite songs and compile them in an easily handled medium. Sounds familiar? What the book industry has handled a little better, and it's mostly due to Amazon's push of the kindle, following Apple's example, is to try get in on the ebook market.
And I think it's a fallacy that most adult buyers of books are willing to dish out the same price or more for the convenience of an ebook. Most I know aren't. They believe, and rightfully so, that it is cheaper to produce an ebook than it is a print book. Cheaper storage involved, no worry about printing and back order etc etc. Sure, there are expenses, cover art, editing, marketing etc, but do those things justify having the ebook priced hired than the hard copy?
In the end, ALL the companies are running a business and looking to make money, regardless of how it affects the consumer. I mean, that is the point of business, to make money. In the end, it's the consumer who might suffer, as can be seen by the price fixing.
And of course the publishers have a right to protect their goods. But at the expense of the consumer being able to read what he already bought across the multiple devices he owns?
“Our authors and readers have been asking for this for a long time,” said president and publisher Tom Doherty. “They’re a technically sophisticated bunch, and DRM is a constant annoyance to them. It prevents them from using legitimately-purchased e-books in perfectly legal ways, like moving them from one kind of e-reader to another.” That was from Tor. I didn't make it up.