|
What the ebook should really cost is a stupid question, buried in the past.
My answer would be something like:
- if I can get it to my ebook reader, paid, ready to read, with no OCR errors or missing sentences, in one minute since I see the offer, and I don't have to buy it again and again to read it on another device or because some DRM server went down, it can cost 15$ and I'll buy it. I'm paying for reliability of service, not for an ebook in this case.
- if I'll have to pay for it again and again to read it on another device or because some DRM server went down, I won't pay for it, and will get a physical book or a darknet ebook instead. Because that's not buying, and I prefer to have something in my possession rather than be allowed to read it for a time.
- if it's non-DRM, but I have to spend 10 minutes inputting passwords on PayPal, or filling in details on my bank webpage, I most probably will look for it on darknet first. Money is not the problem for me - time is. Again, I'm paying for the service.
So it all depends on how they provide the ebook, and what is the ebook quality, and not on whether it's available or not. Because it is always available somewhere else, even if darknet copies are (sometimes) of poor quality, with OCR errors and no formatting, even if I have to spend 15 minutes getting to the nearest bookstore (which, by the way, isn't an option for me - English books are available in very few bookstores in my country).
By the way, I'm presently not buying anything, or stealing :P anything, as I've been reading mystery classics from Mobileread for the last 6 months. But when I want to get a book, I'll get it the most convenient way possible, while it's still readable.
|