How many digital bookstores are needed?

[Giggleton]

It's interesting, but digital bookstores don't really need to stock anything and individual authors could set up subpages under the main page, or we could just see the web as the bookstore...

Do you think its absurd, or perhaps ludicrous to see files/texts priced differently on multiple sites? I suppose that is the real question here.

[AndrewH]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

Do you think its absurd, or perhaps ludicrous to see files/texts priced differently on multiple sites? I suppose that is the real question here.

No more absurd than two gas stations across the street from each other with different prices.

[Giggleton]

Originally Posted by AndrewH

No more absurd than two gas stations across the street from each other with different prices.

Yes I also think that is completely absurd. Although the gas might not be exactly the same...

If the world is absurd, why shouldn't we be able to do absurd things like read whatever we want whenever we want? Maybe that is not an absurd idea? Maybe that is a good idea?

In the past, pre ebook/pre digital, Having only a single place to access information would have been hard to manage, mostly because of the stocking issue, no one should ever be in charge of that sort of thing, there is just not enough variations possible in one mind or a thousand minds to cover the full spectrum if you know what I mean.

But these days, it seems like it would be so simple to just gather up all the books and load them onto a computer, even straight pdf's are better than nothing. Indeed there are a few sites around whose aim is exactly that but they are continually harassed by the "authorities" for hosting unauthorized knowledge?

Why do we allow this to happen?

Is it the constant repetition of lost sales scaring us into believing that it must be done in order to protect the interests of the creators?

Isn't there a million ways to enable access to all texts while at the same time compensating the creators? Why don't we try some of them? Or do you prefer perpetual copyright?

I voted for a single store, but I'm pretty sure it would only work if that bookstore had all the books and the authors did not have the ability to set the price, although there would be an average price listed that people had paid in order to grease the wheels so to speak.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by QuantumIguana

I'm surprised that even 16% of respondents think that only one bookstore is needed.

Look to the OP.
He's not asking what the *industry* needs.
Yes, competition is good. (As long as its not Amazon, or Apple, or Microsoft, or some other big successful company doing the competing. Only competition by struggling or nearly-irrelevant companies is good. )

The question is: "how many bookstores would you browse".
(And buy from.)

And with the domination of the walled gardens (Kindle and Nook add up to 90% of ebook sales) and the Fixed Priced scam in place, there is no *practical* real-world need for real-world ebook buyers to go to more than one ebookstore. That *is* what they signed up for with their walled-garden readers. And they don't.

Theoretical competition is all fine and dandy but the real world out there and the numbers it produces say that the *actual* mainstream ebook buyers only need one ebookstore to meet their needs.

(Of course, there is room for author and publisher direct-sale web sites, but those aren't really ebookstores in the sense of this discussion. They're just "factory-outlets".)

Now, just because individual ebook buyers only need *one* bookstore doesn't mean the *industry* doesn't need more than one. Just that the needs of the one aren't the needs of the many.

[calibrated]

Originally Posted by CJJ

Digital bookstores that let me support my local independent bookstore. That's why I use Google.

I agree completely.

[Giggleton]

Originally Posted by calibrated

I agree completely.

Are you saying you support a digital bookstore as an internet front to the paperbook store?

What exactly is an independent bookstore in the era of ebooks anyway?

I can tell you what I think an independent bookstore is, Basically it's someone or a group of people who have taken it upon themselves to promote a certain set of texts. They will promote these texts because they enjoyed reading them.

Once this group of independents decide to promote their books, the network sends some messages to the creator of the texts, letting them know that there is a new independent bookstore/marketer who wishes to promote their book. At this point two things can happen, the creator can say no thanks, opting out of the promotion or they can simply click OK and allow the independent bookstore to do their thing...

Of course there is the idea of not allowing the creator to opt out of the promotion, this would fall under the idea of an end to copyright but it is sort of a halfway point between now and then. Because before the promotion begins, the promoter/independent bookstore will decide beforehand, through the payment provider how much of a cut from sales they will receive for each book sold through the promoter's site, (the promoter's site could simply be a digital flag/watermark for tracking purposes).

But basically, the book had already available for sale through the main site, or rather the book had already been uploaded by the creator, and has simply been sitting there on the server waiting for some promotion. Referrer tracking to put it simply, incentives basically.

Mostly as a way to get over the sampling problem, (too many texts, too little time) Pay someone to sample for you, that's how it has been done in the past yes? That is how it is done now and that is how it will be done in the future.

Perhaps we should just all sign up for Amazon's referral program? Lately though Amazon seems a bit too closed for my tastes.

[calibrated]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

Are you saying you support a digital bookstore as an internet front to the paperbook store?

I am simply saying that when buying ebooks, I prefer to buy from a source that provides some revenue to a local business if possible, thereby contributing in a small way to my local economy and helping to keep my neighbors employed.

[Giggleton]

Originally Posted by calibrated

I am simply saying that when buying ebooks, I prefer to buy from a source that provides some revenue to a local business if possible, thereby contributing in a small way to my local economy and helping to keep my neighbors employed.

I am not quite sure what you mean by local source when it comes to ebooks. Unless you are referring to the author of the book being located near you??

It should certainly be simple to do a search for local promoters of ebooks through google books or some other site...

Finding a local promoter of ebooks who is also promoting ebooks that are relevant to you might be more difficult...

[calibrated]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

I am not quite sure what you mean by local source when it comes to ebooks. Unless you are referring to the author of the book being located near you??

It should certainly be simple to do a search for local promoters of ebooks through google books or some other site...

Finding a local promoter of ebooks who is also promoting ebooks that are relevant to you might be more difficult...

It's really quite simple. There are a couple of bookshops in my area who partner with the Google ebook store, and they receive a portion of the sale.

[Giggleton]

Originally Posted by calibrated

It's really quite simple. There are a couple of bookshops in my area who partner with the Google ebook store, and they receive a portion of the sale.

So the bookstore obtains the rights to distribute the ebook? The bookstore is functioning as the publisher in this case? I am not sure we should be tying ebooks to a physical bookstore, it doesn't make much sense to me.

Can you give some links to books available through google books that are tied to these local bookstores you mention?

[pwalker8]

Multiple ebook stores. For one thing, different ebooks stores have different approaches and different ways of browsing. The three major ones I use are Amazon, Sony and Baen. Baen is of course a publisher, but it's also an ebook store for several small publishers. If you like the style of books that publish puts out, then it's a good place to shop. Amazon goes for volume, but it's most useful if you are looking for a specific title or author rather than just browsing. Sony use to be better at browsing, but now they have started to allow independents, it's become more difficult to wade through the drek to find the books that I'm interested in.

My basic point is that people have different ways of shopping, thus not everyone likes the same store.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

Can you give some links to books available through google books that are tied to these local bookstores you mention?

This is the link for independent book stores listed by state that receive a portion of the sale from Google ebooks. You'll notice each of these book stores has a link on their homepage to purchase ebooks from Google. Similar to an click-through affiliate. They claim to have "millions" of ebooks available. I noticed quite a few located in Oregon. You may even be familiar with some of them.

http://www.indiebound.org/google-ebooks

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by Giggleton

If all prices are equal and the selection is the same, how many digital bookstores would you browse?

Zero.

I am mainly led to books by reviews, or by deciding I'd like to learn more about a subject. Browsing is not really an issue.

[Yapyap]

I don't live in an Agency pricing country, so I do use multiple bookshops to shop around for the best price - the differences can be rather noticeable and they add up quickly, so I'd hate to be tied to just one bookshop.

But even if the selection as well as prices were equal all around, different people have different tastes and a layout & browsing/searching options that work for some don't work for others. It's always good to have choice, even if it came down to a purely aesthetic/ergonomic choice.

[Giggleton]

Originally Posted by Fbone

This is the link for independent book stores listed by state that receive a portion of the sale from Google ebooks. You'll notice each of these book stores has a link on their homepage to purchase ebooks from Google. Similar to an click-through affiliate. They claim to have "millions" of ebooks available. I noticed quite a few located in Oregon. You may even be familiar with some of them.

http://www.indiebound.org/google-ebooks

Yeah, one of the stores is right down the street from me lol! Although the store stocks a lot of used romantic paperbacks, they appear to list the entire catalog through google ebooks. I suppose they get a few percentage points from the sale of each ebook...

I suppose you could say that all of those google affiliates are just different interfaces to the main google ebooks site.


Browsing was just used as a general term, although I suppose zero should have been an option, personally I just use rss feeds and download whatever title sounds interesting.