Cultural Resistance Hobbles German E-Book Market

[frahse]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

And yet it is perfectly legal to tatoo a child that is 3 or 5 years old. Go figure?

Well, you can poke holes in a baby's ear lobe at any age and put in an earring.

[Kumabjorn]

At least a hole in an earlobe will eventually revert, but I admit, I'm not a fan of that practice either.

[VaporPunk]

Originally Posted by frahse

1) We should all gather round the hearth singing and toasting plib, SeaKing and others for bringing to mind for me at least that any plane or helicopter, old, new, whole, or punctured, that is still air worthy is better than that open hatchway the jump-master is pushing you out of.

Actually, I take that back. They all just reminded me what a boring and safe little life I've led so far.

At the risk of massively over-generalizing, I've found that Europeans in general, Belgians in particular, are less quick to embrace new technology than folks in North America. There are always exceptions, of course, but geekiness is far more accepted in NA than here. Brits are the exception, as they always are.

Once e-readers become more "mainstream" and prices make more sense, they will start to catch on here.

[Kumabjorn]

Originally Posted by VaporPunk

Actually, I take that back. They all just reminded me what a boring and safe little life I've led so far.

At the risk of massively over-generalizing, I've found that Europeans in general, Belgians in particular, are less quick to embrace new technology than folks in North America. There are always exceptions, of course, but geekiness is far more accepted in NA than here. Brits are the exception, as they always are.

Once e-readers become more "mainstream" and prices make more sense, they will start to catch on here.

Well, you're right that e-Readers has not caught on as much in Europe as in NA, but I don't think it primarily relates to some anti-technology sentiment. It is more because of the lack of available reading material. There is probably less than 2,000 e-books available in Swedish, I don't know about French or Flemish, but I would guess that on a per capita basis the numbers would be fairly similar.
I do however believe that Europeans who enjoy reading books in English has caught the tech train as it was about to leave the station. In my own case the deciding factor was immediate delivery and significant savings in S&H.
The 100 or so e-books I've purchased from Amazon the last year would have cost me around $1,000 in S&H, instead they've cost me $200 in Whispersync surcharges. Deduct the $200 I paid for the Kindle (incl S&H) and I'm ahead $600, all of which has been applied towards purchasing books.
Lately new titles in Swedish are starting to appear, they are generally sold at 60 % discount compared to the released hard cover edition. While they are strictly epub, I'm on speaking terms with the good Apprentice, so I have no problem putting them on my Kindle. I consider myself far ahead of the general curve in this country and as an avid reader I benefit from my decision on a daily basis.

[plib]

Originally Posted by VaporPunk

At the risk of massively over-generalizing, I've found that Europeans in general, Belgians in particular, are less quick to embrace new technology than folks in North America.

Maybe. But you have waffles and Belgian chocolate!

[VaporPunk]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

Well, you're right that e-Readers has not caught on as much in Europe as in NA, but I don't think it primarily relates to some anti-technology sentiment. It is more because of the lack of available reading material. There is probably less than 2,000 e-books available in Swedish, I don't know about French or Flemish, but I would guess that on a per capita basis the numbers would be fairly similar.
I do however believe that Europeans who enjoy reading books in English has caught the tech train as it was about to leave the station. In my own case the deciding factor was immediate delivery and significant savings in S&H.
The 100 or so e-books I've purchased from Amazon the last year would have cost me around $1,000 in S&H, instead they've cost me $200 in Whispersync surcharges. Deduct the $200 I paid for the Kindle (incl S&H) and I'm ahead $600, all of which has been applied towards purchasing books.
Lately new titles in Swedish are starting to appear, they are generally sold at 60 % discount compared to the released hard cover edition. While they are strictly epub, I'm on speaking terms with the good Apprentice, so I have no problem putting them on my Kindle. I consider myself far ahead of the general curve in this country and as an avid reader I benefit from my decision on a daily basis.

An excellent point concerning availabilty in different languages. Dutch ebooks are few in number but tbh, I really haven't looked that hard. I'm a Yank living in Belgium (moved here with my lady squeeze, who is Flemish) and while there are quite a few online stores that sell English books, they are in general a lot more pricey. I made the same calculations as you. Getting a kindle will save me lots of moolah in the long run.

Originally Posted by plib

Maybe. But you have waffles and Belgian chocolate!

And beer, don't forget the beer! And Frit! (lovely fries soaked in mayo + salt + grease)

[HappyMartin]

Originally Posted by VaporPunk

An excellent point concerning availabilty in different languages. Dutch ebooks are few in number but tbh, I really haven't looked that hard. I'm a Yank living in Belgium (moved here with my lady squeeze, who is Flemish) and while there are quite a few online stores that sell English books, they are in general a lot more pricey. I made the same calculations as you. Getting a kindle will save me lots of moolah in the long run.


And beer, don't forget the beer! And Frit! (lovely fries soaked in mayo + salt + grease)

And fantastic bicycle races

[Jaden]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

I do however believe that Europeans who enjoy reading books in English has caught the tech train as it was about to leave the station.

Almost all of the books I read are in English. And I'm reading ebooks since 2004. So at least for me it's true.

[Kumabjorn]

Look at how well e-books are doing in the UK. One contributing reason has to be the selection of available books, everybody reads English, with the exception of Wales I suppose.

[CommonReader]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

How likely is it that the silly pricing will lead to people trying to find ways of buying e-books from other markets where the pricing is lower? For example, there are Australians on this board who circumvent geographic restrictions in order to buy e-books not availaible in Australia and e-books that are sillily priced.

There isn't that much choice for German readers. Austria also has fixed book prices and it is even more expensive than Germany. Switzerland has abolished fixed book prices but it would be a first if any consumer product ended up being cheaper in Switzerland than in Germany.

[cHex]

Originally Posted by plib

Maybe. But you have waffles and Belgian chocolate!

On the other other hand: brussels sprouts.

[QuantumIguana]

Originally Posted by cHex

On the other other hand: brussels sprouts.

Brussels Sprouts are good! Just choose the small ones, and don't overcook them, and toss them with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I've also enjoyed them baked, but I haven't prepared them that way.

But somehow, I think I might not have converted you to Brussels Sproutism.

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by cHex

On the other other hand: brussels sprouts.

If French Fries are really from Belgium, maybe brussels sprouts are really from France.

[plib]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

If French Fries are really from Belgium, maybe brussels sprouts are really from France.

Blame the French is always a good working hypothesis. If that doesn't work out, then blame the Yanks. As a last resort you can always blame the Brits.

[frahse]

Originally Posted by plib

Blame the French is always a good working hypothesis. If that doesn't work out, then blame the Yanks. As a last resort you can always blame the Brits.

The French "did it." They "did it first." The will "do it when they wish to." They "know that."

I have been there and learned all those important lessons.

I might find something wrong (engineering) and tell my French counterpart and it was always "Oh, well we French know that."

Well, why the hell didn't they fix it to begin with and not bother me?

(grrrr - sounds of teeth grinding-)