Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg
darryl alluded to this in #6, but I don't think anyone linked to it, and it has the ring of truth to me:
http://www.idealog.com/blog/a-first-...ast-post-here/
I recommend reading the whole Shatzkin link. And I also recommend not responding that so and so is a idiot.  |
I actually have some time for Shatzkin. He is one of the few prominent commentators from a hardcore traditional publishing background who seems to be genuinely trying to come to terms with the tsunami of change in the industry which is Amazon and self-publishing. We all have our prejudices and I wonder whether I would have got even as far as he has given his background. He is also prepared to admit that he is wrong on occasion, for which he is ridiculed in some circles when he should be congratulated.
Having said this, I doubt that Amazon insisted on agency at the time contracts were negotiated with the Big 5. We cannot, of course, be totally sure what happened since those involved, at least officially, are keeping quiet. But I really don't think it was clear to the Big 5 at this time that agency would be such a disaster for them and such a boon to Amazon. Immediately putting up prices the way they did to me does not show consciousness of price sensitivity. It shows an attempt to differentiate their own books from Indies/Self Published books in the hopes of maintaining a "quality" mass market at a higher price, whilst of course also serving to assist the sale of print books. Had this succeeded then Agency would not be a disaster but a great success.
Agency is only the disaster it is for the Big 5 because of the law of supply and demand. Supply has simply exploded, and, the differentiation attempt having largely failed, the price for traditionally published books simply must come down. It is just a question of who pays for it. The reasons for Amazon's subsidy no longer exist, and I doubt Amazon would discount Big 5 books now even under a retail model without the Big 5 reducing their prices accordingly. It is time for the Big 5 to face facts and re-organise their businesses for the new conditions. Competing with Indies and Self Published books requires pricing at a level which simply cannot support all of the intermediaries and outdated practices. I can also see real problems in the future for the Big 5 in attracting and keeping authors if they don't adapt. I find it quite surprising that none of the Big 5 have themselves got into self-publishing on a similar basis to Amazon. Of course, that is now a ship that has sailed long ago, and to even attempt it now would require substantial investment and risk. I just can't see it happening, which means Amazon will almost certainly continue to dominate this vibrant and growing segment of the Industry for the indefinite future. It appears that Amazon has comprehensively outclassed it's competition. It has taken a long term view seldom adopted by Western enterprises, and has proved to be remarkably prescient. I could say that it would be in the interests of the Big 5 to make peace and co-operate with Amazon, but I actually don't think this is the answer either. Amazon is not a charity but a very good business and sometimes a ruthless one. Amazon has a vision for the future of the publishing (amongst other) industries and they are not of course sharing it. However, I suspect that the long term role of the Big 5 in that vision is an increasingly marginalised one. I also think the opportunity for the Big 5 to change this has essentially gone.