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Originally Posted by ficbot
Oh, but zelda_pinwheel, we are obviously only thinking this way because there are things about the publishing business which we plebians clearly don't understand  |
yes, that must be it.
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Well you know what, I say the business world needs to evolve to meet its customer's needs if it wants to survive, and adapting to new technology and the changes it brings is part of that. Think of all the manufacturers of hand-crack washing machines, for example, who had to adapt to the electrical age. Did they set up systems for them to continue to make hand-crack washing machines? No. Did they bail them out when people stopped buying hand-crank washing machines? No. If they were smart, they learned how to make electric washing machines and they sold those instead.
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but publishers have already demonstrated that they can't learn from other industries who have been along this road before them ; otherwise, they would be avoiding all the costly and ultimately futile mistakes the music industry made only a few years earlier, when music first began to be dematerialised, instead of making EXACTLY THE SAME ONES now. no need to go as far back as the hand-crank washing machine.
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When you had to physically ship boxes of actual books to people, geographical borders WERE a consideration because it would cost more to mail you, in France, my physical box from here, in Canada. But with e-books, that is not so much an issue. In fact, they are saving a ton of money because this barrier is not there. They can reach MORE people. They can sell MORE books. Why would someone not see the value in that? Most of the time, you don't even know you can't buy it until after you have already read the blurb and clicked the 'buy now' button---so this means that what they are doing is getting people to the virtual point of SHOWING UP AT THE CASH REGISTER WITH THE BOOK IN ONE HAND AND A WAD OF BILLS IN THE OTHER and then saying 'no, not from YOU!' How is that even a little bit smart, especially in an age where books have so much competition already?
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you are preaching to the choir here, ficbot. i think exactly like you.