Physical books to come with digital copies aswell?

EtherealWinter · 05-22-2010, 01:55 AM

Hello,
I am wondering if there are any plans for physical books to be release that come with digital copies(i.e. a code and you go to a website to download) ? It's because in my mind the prices of ebooks seem extremely high for a non-physical product. I wouldn't even mind if we brought a book and we could pay like a dollar extra for a digital copy.

Worldwalker · 05-22-2010, 02:03 AM

It's already happening. Baen Books has been packing ebook-filled CDs in the back of books for years. O'Reilly sells pbook/ebook combos, too, and will sell you the ebook cheap if you have the pbook.

Spiffy · 05-22-2010, 02:16 AM

What's being suggested here should be the default, in my opinion, not the exception.

No media costs. That's the thing about eBooks.

Now its been explained ad naseum that eBooks still cost so much because you are paying for a lot of other things besides media cost. You are paying for royalties. For typesetting. For editing. For someone to shoot some stupid commercial where James Patterson can pretend he's an actor. Stuff like that.

But those costs aren't increased in ANY way if someone is given both a physical and an e-copy. They remain the same.

This would, I think, only help the sales of physical books, I think, and be good P.R. as well. Of course some number crunchers are going to agonize over the potential lost revenue of selling the SAME product in different media and making more money, but realistically that doesn't happen that often.

Disney, of all companies, has surprisingly set the precedent here just as much as the likes of Baen or O'Reilly. When you buy a Disney Blueray disk these days you get... a digital copy (a computer playable file) as a bonus feature. Its the same principle.

05-22-2010, 01:55 AM	#1
EtherealWinter The Omega and Alpha Posts: 34 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kobo	Physical books to come with digital copies aswell? Hello, I am wondering if there are any plans for physical books to be release that come with digital copies(i.e. a code and you go to a website to download) ? It's because in my mind the prices of ebooks seem extremely high for a non-physical product. I wouldn't even mind if we brought a book and we could pay like a dollar extra for a digital copy.

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05-22-2010, 02:03 AM	#2
Worldwalker Curmudgeon Posts: 3,085 Karma: 722357 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: PRS-505	It's already happening. Baen Books has been packing ebook-filled CDs in the back of books for years. O'Reilly sells pbook/ebook combos, too, and will sell you the ebook cheap if you have the pbook.

05-22-2010, 02:16 AM	#3
Spiffy Groupie Posts: 160 Karma: 416 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: Astak EZ Reader Pro AND Sony PRS-505	What's being suggested here should be the default, in my opinion, not the exception. No media costs. That's the thing about eBooks. Now its been explained ad naseum that eBooks still cost so much because you are paying for a lot of other things besides media cost. You are paying for royalties. For typesetting. For editing. For someone to shoot some stupid commercial where James Patterson can pretend he's an actor. Stuff like that. But those costs aren't increased in ANY way if someone is given both a physical and an e-copy. They remain the same. This would, I think, only help the sales of physical books, I think, and be good P.R. as well. Of course some number crunchers are going to agonize over the potential lost revenue of selling the SAME product in different media and making more money, but realistically that doesn't happen that often. Disney, of all companies, has surprisingly set the precedent here just as much as the likes of Baen or O'Reilly. When you buy a Disney Blueray disk these days you get... a digital copy (a computer playable file) as a bonus feature. Its the same principle.

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