Amazon offers indie authors reward for going exclusive - Page 6

rhadin · 12-23-2011, 08:08 AM

I find the timing of the program most interesting. All of the major ebook players in the United States expect multimillion device sales for the holiday season. If past years are any indicator, Christmas Day may well be the biggest shopping day of the year, certainly for ebooks. Yet 61,400 titles won't be available to all those people who received a Nook, Sony, Kobo, or other non-Amazon device as a holiday gift. Seems to me that is not a "grand experiment" but a devious way to limit the market, especially outside the United States.

J. Strnad · 12-23-2011, 12:45 PM

I meant that my own going exclusive for 90 days was a grand experiment. For Amazon, I'm sure it's a well-considered and cutthroat business maneuver.

I, too, (I must add) would be happy to engage in well-considered and cutthroat business maneuvers but I have the business sense of a stick of wood. I try this and try that and then do more of what works and less of what doesn't.

ScalyFreak · 12-23-2011, 02:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ken Maltby

3. I have no problem with an author selling his books on Amazon, but I for one won't be buying them there. If that is the only place they are sold then I won't be buying them. I realize that I am likely a member of a smaller group of ebook buyers who would hold that position.

I'm even more rare. I found a book free from Amazon, that I could tell I would really like. Since I knew the publisher sells it on their website, I emailed them to verify they sell DRM free, then paid the publisher for a copy of the eBook Amazon offered me for free.

Quote:

Originally Posted by anamardoll

My Real Life Kindle friends only buy from Amazon; my Real Life Nook friends only buy from B&N. Half of them buy FROM THEIR DEVICE, which gives me the shivers -- they don't back up their books, don't even understand why I would think that was necessary. Who needs Calibre when you have 3G/Wi-Fi delivery? *eek*

Because buying from the device locks the book into your account, and you can always re-download the again as long as the account is still active? When I sent away my beloved 950 for warranty replacement, my Sony books were all kept in their cloud/on their servers (not sure which one they use) and once I had authorized my replacement-950 it was easy enough to access all my Sony-acquired books directly on the 950 again.

Of course, this can still lead to severe problems if you lose access to your account.

John F · 12-23-2011, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

...

Because buying from the device locks the book into your account, and you can always re-download the again as long as the account is still active? ...

I wonder how true this is for freebies? A little while ago I tried redownloading a freebie I got from Sony a while back, and I was unsuccessful. It was still listed in my account, but I was unable to redownload it.

I could go on a little rant, but I'll control myself.

ScalyFreak · 12-23-2011, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John F

I wonder how true this is for freebies? A little while ago I tried redownloading a freebie I got from Sony a while back, and I was unsuccessful. It was still listed in my account, but I was unable to redownload it.

All my Sony books are freebies (I don't pay for DRMed media) and I've never had that problem. Maybe it's just you?

anamardoll · 12-23-2011, 07:01 PM

@ScalyFreak,

Somewhere on MR there is a thread about someone losing access to all their ebooks because the publisher yanked them from the store (Feedbooks? I think. Meh.) and asking whether or not it would be appropriate for them to replace their several thousand dollar purchases via library "liberation". And about 100 people calling the OP a dirty thief for even asking the question.

MAYBE Amazon will prevent that sort of thing from ever happening to their customers. But I do know that if it DOES happen, 60% of MR will blame the victim for not DRM-stripping and backing up everything.

ScalyFreak · 12-23-2011, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anamardoll

@ScalyFreak,

Somewhere on MR there is a thread about someone losing access to all their ebooks because the publisher yanked them from the store (Feedbooks? I think. Meh.) and asking whether or not it would be appropriate for them to replace their several thousand dollar purchases via library "liberation". And about 100 people calling the OP a dirty thief for even asking the question.

MAYBE Amazon will prevent that sort of thing from ever happening to their customers. But I do know that if it DOES happen, 60% of MR will blame the victim for not DRM-stripping and backing up everything.

Somewhere on MR there is a thread of an Amazon customer who was in that situation.

The main reason I will never pay for DRM'ed media (I will get it DRM free or go without) outside of my video games, is that I detest when someone else has control over what is on my computer. Old geek habit.

anamardoll · 12-23-2011, 11:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

Somewhere on MR there is a thread of an Amazon customer who was in that situation.

The main reason I will never pay for DRM'ed media (I will get it DRM free or go without) outside of my video games, is that I detest when someone else has control over what is on my computer. Old geek habit.

So... your advice is even more restrictive than the statement I made about backing up my stuff?

J. Strnad · 12-24-2011, 12:16 AM

DRM makes criminals of otherwise honest people who simply want to back up the material they've paid for, or read it on whatever device they choose. Format is nothing...you can easily convert from one format to another. DRM is what holds us back from the "any ebook on any reader" utopia we dream of.

ScalyFreak · 12-24-2011, 12:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anamardoll

So... your advice is even more restrictive than the statement I made about backing up my stuff?

I wasn't trying to give advice, I simply wanted to make a point. And this is it:

Quote:

Originally Posted by J. Strnad

DRM makes criminals of otherwise honest people who simply want to back up the material they've paid for, or read it on whatever device they choose.

Excellent summary of the problem with DRM.

Fbone · 12-24-2011, 02:52 PM

63,000 titles

Quite a few free ones have appeared. It may be worth a look.

Fbone · 12-26-2011, 07:18 PM

64,500 titles.

The List and Run have moved up in the popularity standings. Helped by their recent free giveaway. People are seeking out those freebies.

JSWolf · 12-26-2011, 08:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giggleton

Who thinks that having different "prices" for the same digital file is a good thing? Meaning we only need one retailer/server for our texts, as long as that server is accessible to everyone.

This experiment by Amazon is a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't go far enough though...

No it's not. Amazon doesn't offer eBooks in ePub that can be read with every ePub capable device. A step in the right direction is to offer all of their eBooks in multiple formats for different readers.

JSWolf · 12-26-2011, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anamardoll

FWIW, I hate Smashwords because I hate the meatgrinder.

I'm a B&N buyer first, Amazon second, anything-Smashwords-outletted as a distant third.

When I publish my book next year, I'm just going to plunk down the money to hire a Smashwords formatter. I hate the waste, but I know I don't have the patience to deal with their chatty blah-blah-blah style guide. I read it once and wanted to throw my reader at the wall -- if I wrote my professional user manuals that I write at work like that, I'd be fired in two seconds, and good riddance.

See? I'm already getting worked up. Deep breaths, Ana, deep breaths.

You will be able to publish at eBookMall soon.

Quote:

Publishing Services

We estimate that these services will be available on or around 1/20/2012. We're still working on creating our new eBook submission methods and integrating them with this new website. If you have submitted eBooks to eBookMall in the past, please see this important note for current authors and publishers. Check this page again later for status updates.

http://www.ebookmall.com/publish-ebooks

vaughnmr · 12-27-2011, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You will be able to publish at eBookMall soon.

http://www.ebookmall.com/publish-ebooks

Why would you want to buy ebooks from them? They only sell epub or pdf ebooks, so they won't sell ebooks to the majority of ebook readers. I'm not going to buy from them.

Sound familiar, Wolf?

12-23-2011, 12:45 PM	#77
J. Strnad Guru Posts: 915 Karma: 3537194 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kobo, Kindle 3, Paperwhite	I meant that my own going exclusive for 90 days was a grand experiment. For Amazon, I'm sure it's a well-considered and cutthroat business maneuver. I, too, (I must add) would be happy to engage in well-considered and cutthroat business maneuvers but I have the business sense of a stick of wood. I try this and try that and then do more of what works and less of what doesn't. Last edited by J. Strnad; 12-23-2011 at 12:49 PM. Reason: To add the final paragraph

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12-23-2011, 08:08 AM	#76
rhadin Literacy = Understanding Posts: 4,833 Karma: 59674358 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: The World of Books Device: Nook, Nook Tablet	I find the timing of the program most interesting. All of the major ebook players in the United States expect multimillion device sales for the holiday season. If past years are any indicator, Christmas Day may well be the biggest shopping day of the year, certainly for ebooks. Yet 61,400 titles won't be available to all those people who received a Nook, Sony, Kobo, or other non-Amazon device as a holiday gift. Seems to me that is not a "grand experiment" but a devious way to limit the market, especially outside the United States.

12-23-2011, 07:01 PM	#81
anamardoll Chasing Butterflies Posts: 3,132 Karma: 5074169 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: American Southwest Device: Uses batteries.	@ScalyFreak, Somewhere on MR there is a thread about someone losing access to all their ebooks because the publisher yanked them from the store (Feedbooks? I think. Meh.) and asking whether or not it would be appropriate for them to replace their several thousand dollar purchases via library "liberation". And about 100 people calling the OP a dirty thief for even asking the question. MAYBE Amazon will prevent that sort of thing from ever happening to their customers. But I do know that if it DOES happen, 60% of MR will blame the victim for not DRM-stripping and backing up everything.

12-24-2011, 12:16 AM	#84
J. Strnad Guru Posts: 915 Karma: 3537194 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kobo, Kindle 3, Paperwhite	DRM makes criminals of otherwise honest people who simply want to back up the material they've paid for, or read it on whatever device they choose. Format is nothing...you can easily convert from one format to another. DRM is what holds us back from the "any ebook on any reader" utopia we dream of.

12-24-2011, 02:52 PM	#86
Fbone Is that a sandwich? Posts: 8,312 Karma: 102338360 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Nook Glowlight Plus	63,000 titles Quite a few free ones have appeared. It may be worth a look.

12-26-2011, 07:18 PM	#87
Fbone Is that a sandwich? Posts: 8,312 Karma: 102338360 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Nook Glowlight Plus	64,500 titles. The List and Run have moved up in the popularity standings. Helped by their recent free giveaway. People are seeking out those freebies.