Quote:
Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks
I do think the "casual" sharer is more dangerous than most people comprehend. I even had a relative "share" a file with a friend. Obviously a discussion ensued. The relative never thought a thing of it--certainly didn't think of it harming my income. It's ignorance and lack of forethought that is the biggest danger.
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Most people do not distinguish, in their minds, between paper books and ebooks. They think of them in the same terms, and expect the same things from them. They share ebooks because they share paper books. When you're done with the latest detective novel, you pass it on to a buddy who likes them, but can't afford to buy them. That ebooks are fundamentally different from paper books in that regard is not all that obvious to the average person who isn't think about it.
And for those who do, they note that they pay the same price for both, and thus, expect the same abilities from both. A lot of people feel that if they aren't getting a steep discount, there's no reason they shouldn't treat it exactly the same.
I offer no opinion on the right or wrong of any of this. Ebooks are too new for the world to have figured all this out yet. But the lack of recognition of the differences is very real.