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Originally Posted by pwalker8
Some podcasters are going to a patron model. In general, the ethical/moral framework is there is no such thing as a free lunch. If someone can't make money creating a product, they won't create the product.
To a certain extent, the used book model was as much in response to books going out of print as it was a way to save money. I would suggest that perhaps the subscription model, might replace the used book model when it comes to ebooks. If you only read a book once and don't want to pay the full price for a book, then the subscription model ought to work.
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The subscription model is definitely one answer and it does seem to be alive and well at SCRIBD and Amazon so far. A few blogs I follow are moving to a subscription/patron model. I'm still trying to keep my blog as just an Amazon associate with some sponsored giveaways, but social media has cut into blog browsing (and Amazon doesn't allow associate links on FB). It's interesting to see how things are changing. One of my very favorite blogs ever is trying to figure out how to keep going. She did her blog for free for years, but her job has changed to part time and now she has to find a way to monetize the blog or give it up and take a second job. Your Free Lunch is true. People can give things away for free for a while, but eventually it's either make money or move on.
I appreciate your insight on used books too--you're right about the out of print part of it and I think that is often forgotten. It allowed access to books for a longer period. That aspect is no longer really necessary because of POD printing and ebooks.