Agency pricing (almost) 1 year on...how many e-books have you NOT bought?

[CWatkinsNash]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

I think that most people who claim to be boycotting on principle are actually boycotting because they don't like paying the higher prices.

I'm inclined to agree with you, to a point. I don't boycott, period. Perhaps that comes from having been surrounded by people whose principles and boycott targets changed with the wind, and I got rather tired of hearing about the trendy cause of the week. Or perhaps it's because there are things I do have cause to be outraged about, things that I can't control, and it makes Agency pricing seem like a peripheral annoyance, rather than an actual issue.

This is all my own perspective, of course, and not meant to disparage those who choose that route - it's just not for me. Past experiences have made the idea of boycotts leave a bad taste in my mouth, and I accept that my perspective may be skewed because of that.

And it gets complicated - now we have the HarperCollins library issue rearing its head, so I'll use that as an example. Not giving money to HC would mean not giving money to two authors I really like, authors whose contracts were in place before any of this crap happened. Even if the things in my first paragraph didn't exist, I still could not do that.

Regarding ebooks as luxury goods - yes, I agree that ebooks are, at this time, luxury goods. Not books as a whole, just the electronic versions that we're discussing here - the ones where cost is an issue. I'm a big supporter of literacy programs and libraries, and the preservation and advancement of culture. At this point, ebooks are in the position of shaping those things going forward, but those things aren't yet dependent on ebooks. When that time comes, they will no longer be luxuries but will become essential.

Now that I've put everyone to sleep (should I put tl;dr at the top?) I will tell you where my line is drawn and why. For me, it's simple economics. If there's a book I really, really want (assuming I can afford it at that time), it's worth more to me for a possible variety of reasons - could be the next book in a series I love, or the latest book from a favorite author, or a story that means something to me. But if that "really want" condition isn't met, I simply calculate how many other books I could buy instead of that one book. When the price outweighs the desire, it comes down to stretching my dollars.

[carld]

Ebooks aren't necessarily a luxury. I can't read very well except for large print books or ereaders, so it's either ebooks or large print's limited selection.

[stickybuns]

Originally Posted by carld

Ebooks aren't necessarily a luxury. I can't read very well except for large print books or ereaders, so it's either ebooks or large print's limited selection.

How does one define "luxury"?

Neither ebooks nor pbooks help to form the foundation for Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I'm not saying that literature has no place within the hierarchy; certainly, a good book can go a long way in fulfilling the need for esteem and self-actualization.

Nonetheless, we really are privileged in our ability to pick and choose how we go about meeting these needs. Simply having the opportunity to choose between a large print book and an ebook really is a luxury in the grand scheme of things.

[carld]

Originally Posted by stickybuns

How does one define "luxury"?

I was referring to CWatkinsNash's definition in the post I was replying to.

Regarding ebooks as luxury goods - yes, I agree that ebooks are, at this time, luxury goods. Not books as a whole, just the electronic versions that we're discussing here

For me, and a lot of other visually impaired people, ebooks are our regular books and are not a luxury item according to his definition. How someone chooses to define luxury is, of course, up to them.

[stickybuns]

I hope that I haven't caused any offense to you as I do understand that your needs will not be met by just any old book.

[carld]

Originally Posted by stickybuns

I hope that I haven't caused any offense to you as I do understand that your needs will not be met by just any old book.

Oh no, no offense at all, sorry if it came off that way. I was just explaining my post, no worries

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by Keryl Raist

If by luxury you mean decadent and wasteful lily-gilding excess, then no, they aren't.

I think very little luxury is decadent and wasteful lily-guilding excess. Luxury is anything above and beyond minimum survival requirements. Part of the problem with our current culture is the confusion over luxury and survival. eBooks are not required for survial and neither are paperbooks. Neither is a whole host of things some people are trying to convince us is a 'human right'.

That being said, I'm not against luxury, even for the poor and downtrodden. What I'm against is the inflation of luxury to the status of some sort of minimum daily requirement. A human 'right' if you will. You have no 'right' to cheap and easily available ebooks.

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by Catlady

Books are necessary to civilization.

People don't die from illiteracy either. Is literacy a luxury?

Yes. . . The mere fact that the vast majority of your ancestors (and mine) were profoundly illiterate is proof positive that literacy is a luxury. They were illiterate, yet we are here and presumably thriving. There are MANY things we would hate to do without, many things that enhance the quality of our lives, but that doesn't change the fact that they aren't needed for survival.

And there was civilization LONG before there were books. And not just brutal constructs of evil either. (and modern history, where books are availble is hardly an argument for enlightenment anyway!) I've read arguments that bread and beermaking are key preconditions for civilization since they allow the conversion of grain into easily distributed and easily stored food, but I've never heard anyone argue that there was no civilization prior to the invention of books.

[CWatkinsNash]

Originally Posted by carld

I was referring to CWatkinsNash's definition in the post I was replying to.

For me, and a lot of other visually impaired people, ebooks are our regular books and are not a luxury item according to his definition. How someone chooses to define luxury is, of course, up to them.

I'm a "her" actually. And I don't disagree with you. Ebooks and ereaders definitely fill a need for many of the visually impaired, including some friends of mine. Luxuries often become necessities when there is a specific need that wasn't previously being adequately met.

However, I did state:

Not books as a whole, just the electronic versions that we're discussing here - the ones where cost is an issue.

Emphasis added just now. We're not talking about all ebooks, we're talking about ebooks over a particular price threshold or books from particular publishers. I guess the best way to explain my take on luxury items is with a comparison to food. Food is a necessity. Kobe steaks?? Not so much.

Literacy should be considered a necessity, and that includes a basic level of access to written material. But it does not necessarily include James Patterson's latest release, for example. If these publishers want to pretend their books are Kobe steak, fine. Let them. I don't think anyone will be harmed by lack of access to those particular books, which makes them a luxury by my definition.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by GlenBarrington

Yes. . . The mere fact that the vast majority of your ancestors (and mine) were profoundly illiterate is proof positive that literacy is a luxury. They were illiterate, yet we are here and presumably thriving. There are MANY things we would hate to do without, many things that enhance the quality of our lives, but that doesn't change the fact that they aren't needed for survival.

And there was civilization LONG before there were books. And not just brutal constructs of evil either. (and modern history, where books are availble is hardly an argument for enlightenment anyway!) I've read arguments that bread and beermaking are key preconditions for civilization since they allow the conversion of grain into easily distributed and easily stored food, but I've never heard anyone argue that there was no civilization prior to the invention of books.

What I should have said is that books and literacy are necessary to the advancement of civilization.

[Barcey]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Ditto.
I don't have a list because I'm not buying *anything* from the PriceFix Five; not ebook, not print book. Not new or used. Not at retail or through the book clubs. It's not about price as I actually spent more in 2010 that in previous years but it is about not rewarding their behavior.

I doubt they're noticing my boycott or care.
I doubt I'm making a difference at all.
But it matters to me.

Next!

I feel exactly the same way. They've earned my contempt and not my business.

[Barcey]

Originally Posted by Keryl Raist

What do you think of the Indies? Technically, we're all agency priced too because that's the only way we can get onto Amazon or Barnes and Noble or whatever. Granted we're mostly charging .99-5.99. Are you boycotting us as well? And if not, why not?

Do you want to be boycotted too or are you just curious?

On principal I don't agree with the anti competitive practice. If you want to control the price that is paid then sell direct. If you want the advantages of a competitive distribution channel then let them compete. I understand that for indies it's more complicated then that and there are contractual obligations beyond their control.

I'm not boycotting agency pricing though. It's the combination of all their business decisions related to ebooks that shows they are only interested in trying to protect their fiefdom and have no interest in what is best for the consumer, the author or the industry. The agency pricing was just the step that demonstrated it beyond a doubt.

I've never had to pay them to read their books and I sure don't have to now. I've paid because I like literature and want to support it. I'll continue to pay money for literature but just not to the big publishing houses. My money might not be much but it's all I have to vote with.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Keryl Raist

What do you think of the Indies? Technically, we're all agency priced too because that's the only way we can get onto Amazon or Barnes and Noble or whatever. Granted we're mostly charging .99-5.99. Are you boycotting us as well? And if not, why not?

The agency model is a bad idea because most eBooks under an agency model are priced too high and do not allow sales/discounts. Do agency priced indie eBooks allow sales/discounts?

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The agency model is a bad idea because most eBooks under an agency model are priced too high and do not allow sales/discounts. Do agency priced indie eBooks allow sales/discounts?

The agency model allows for sales and discounts, it even allows for books to be given away for free. In both the agency and retail model products can be discounted at the option of the seller - the only difference is that the agency model makes the publisher the seller, rather than Amazon (for example).

So yes, they can be discounted - just not by Amazon.

The big change here is that Amazon no longer determines the price of all eBooks (which is what was effectively happening before), now each publisher determines the price of their own eBooks.

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by Lemurion

The big change here is that Amazon no longer determines the price of all eBooks (which is what was effectively happening before), now each publisher determines the price of their own eBooks.

Yes, but the problem is that the publishers are not good a retail - even if by "good" you mean maximizing overall profit for the publisher. Publishers obviously are about maximizing profit, but they have a short term view and want to maximize profit over all media (I think they are failing at this goal, but we will never know unless one or more Agency publisher get so bad at this that they go bankrupt). Amazon has a long term view and wants to promote ebooks.

I don't boycott Agency publishers, but I don't buy when they play their stupid games of pricing ebooks more than an available paperback, or pricing ebook bundles at exactly the same total price as the individual ebooks it contains, or pricing a brand new author's first ebook at $14.99.