Quote:
Originally Posted by Solicitous
I haven't seen any CD stores close down because of digital music.
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I've seen
a lot of record stores close.
Independent record stores are now almost non-existent and the few major chains that are left are hanging on by the skin of their teeth.
Tower records - dead
Virgin Megastores - dead
Retailing has always been the most inefficient part of the distribution train, so it's no surprise that the internet is putting great stress on it. The only reason that Amazon hasn't already killed off the bookstore is that people like to browse, and that's still far easier to do in a store with physical books. How long people will continue to pay for that privilege remains to be seen. The problem isn't eBooks, it's that retailing just costs too much and there are other business models that can cut out all that overhead.
Having said that, I don't expect the $10 Kindlebooks price-point to survive.