[cromag]

In most cases pirate copies take some time to hit the internet. People who really want a copy as soon as possible will either have to buy a legit copy or wait for a pirated copy. Enough of them bought a copy that the first and second books sold well.

In the case of the third book, it was an eARC that was pirated, so people who wanted the book as soon as possible didn't have to buy a copy -- they downloaded the pirated copy in droves.

In the case of the fourth book, where they seeded the web with a "pirated" edition of their own, they used a crippled copy -- just the first four chapters repeated a few times. They watched requests on the web from people who were looking for a "real" copy. When the fourth book came out, in the absence of a pirated alternative, it sold well.

I thought it was handled well.


Of course, this is the YA market where many potential customers can be assumed to be low on cash, somewhat impatient, familiar with finding pirated copies, and not too concerned about getting malware on the family computer. I wonder if pricing plays into the numbers. Would teens be more willing to spend $3.99 on a book and more willing to look for pirated copies at "big publisher" prices?