MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Loaning and exchanging e-books

ficbot · 12-14-2008, 10:49 AM

Actually, I quite often sell p-books (or did until I started buying e-books---now, the only p-books I buy are cookbooks and fitness books, and those I keep). I simply did not have the space to store so many p-books.

I typically would buy them at the used bookstore, who sold them for half off the cover price. So, let's take as an example 'The Memory Keeper's Daughter' by Kim Edwards, which is one I scouted out at the used bookstore then came home and bought in E:

Amazon.ca price is $11.52, so half off that is $5.76
I would pay the $5.76, read it and sell it back for half of what they sold it to me for
So I would get back about $2-3 depending on how in demand the book is
This makes my net cost about $3 and I have nothing to 'keep' except the memory

Now, some e-comparing:

Fictionwise club price is $11.90
Assume I buy it on sale for at least 25% off or in rebate (I always buy FW stuff on sale)
So maybe I pay $6-8 for it
Same net outlay of money for me
I don't get the $3 back
But I get to keep the book

So, what would be a fair e-price? I guess if one is not relying on sales as I am (and if Fictionwise ever becomes stingier than they are now with the sales) then I would want a price that nets me s similar mathematical conclusion. I am happy to 'eat' the $3 as it were because I am keeping the book. I am not so concerned about transferability because I buy e-books for, among other reasons, the virtue of keeping them since storage space is not an issue. I would rather it be assumed you can't transfer them, and hence I don't need to worry about restrictive DRM, then have every e-book wrapped up in ten layers of DRM just so you can 'transfer' it to someone else.

So, bottom line for me is, they need to make the price AT MAXIMUM 30% off the list price (50% off is fairer, but 30% would be my bottom line) for the math to work out for me, should the current gravy train of promo codes and sale prices end. I am okay with things right now because I buy 100% of my ebooks during either massive sales, or 100% micropay deals where I am okay with paying full price for something because I know I'll be earning a huge credit to buy other things.

12-14-2008, 10:49 AM	#30
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Actually, I quite often sell p-books (or did until I started buying e-books---now, the only p-books I buy are cookbooks and fitness books, and those I keep). I simply did not have the space to store so many p-books. I typically would buy them at the used bookstore, who sold them for half off the cover price. So, let's take as an example 'The Memory Keeper's Daughter' by Kim Edwards, which is one I scouted out at the used bookstore then came home and bought in E: Amazon.ca price is $11.52, so half off that is $5.76 I would pay the $5.76, read it and sell it back for half of what they sold it to me for So I would get back about $2-3 depending on how in demand the book is This makes my net cost about $3 and I have nothing to 'keep' except the memory Now, some e-comparing: Fictionwise club price is $11.90 Assume I buy it on sale for at least 25% off or in rebate (I always buy FW stuff on sale) So maybe I pay $6-8 for it Same net outlay of money for me I don't get the $3 back But I get to keep the book So, what would be a fair e-price? I guess if one is not relying on sales as I am (and if Fictionwise ever becomes stingier than they are now with the sales) then I would want a price that nets me s similar mathematical conclusion. I am happy to 'eat' the $3 as it were because I am keeping the book. I am not so concerned about transferability because I buy e-books for, among other reasons, the virtue of keeping them since storage space is not an issue. I would rather it be assumed you can't transfer them, and hence I don't need to worry about restrictive DRM, then have every e-book wrapped up in ten layers of DRM just so you can 'transfer' it to someone else. So, bottom line for me is, they need to make the price AT MAXIMUM 30% off the list price (50% off is fairer, but 30% would be my bottom line) for the math to work out for me, should the current gravy train of promo codes and sale prices end. I am okay with things right now because I buy 100% of my ebooks during either massive sales, or 100% micropay deals where I am okay with paying full price for something because I know I'll be earning a huge credit to buy other things.