C|Net: Why e-books cost so much

[Rob Lister]

Originally Posted by slex

In Russia e-books are much cheaper than paper books (2 or 3 times). Bulgarian websites that offer e-books legally do so 20-25% cheaper than the paper book.

In Russia, the e-books read you.

sorry...couldn't resist.

[slex]

I am not sure what you mean with this comment. If you are implying that demand for ebooks is smaller relative to demand for paper books in Russia - you are right. But if you compare it with the situation on the English language market for ebooks in its infancy, you will probably find the same thing. I've only followed it in the last two years, so correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I know ebooks have never been significantly cheaper than paperbooks on Amazon, for example.

Besides, people who have dedicated e-readers in Russia are probably with higher than the average income and no matter how small their number is, provided that in ebook publishing there are no significant economies of scale to be exploited, you can charge as much for ebooks as for paper books. On top of the lower prices, ebooks are sold without DRM and in 10+ formats.

[Penforhire]

slex, that was a joke. It is an old meme. See http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/in-soviet-russia

[musicman2523]

Just finished reading Bright of the Sky ( the Rose ) Got it free. Good sci-fi read. Book 2,3 and 4 are $10.97 on Amazon.....................guess I'll never know what happens...............too much money. No reason for it at all as far as I'm concerned.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by musicman2523

Just finished reading Bright of the Sky ( the Rose ) Got it free. Good sci-fi read. Book 2,3 and 4 are $10.97 on Amazon.....................guess I'll never know what happens...............too much money. No reason for it at all as far as I'm concerned.

Pretty cheap for a good book.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by musicman2523

Just finished reading Bright of the Sky ( the Rose ) Got it free. Good sci-fi read. Book 2,3 and 4 are $10.97 on Amazon.....................guess I'll never know what happens...............too much money. No reason for it at all as far as I'm concerned.

Not even an Agency publisher. Must be due to the expensive commercial leases in and around Buffalo NY.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by Fbone

Not even an Agency publisher. Must be due to the expensive commercial leases in and around Buffalo NY.

The books are only published in trade paperback. They are not published in mass market paperback. The paperback books are $16.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by tompe

The books are only published in trade paperback. They are not published in mass market paperback. The paperback books are $16.

That's the reason the ebooks cost $10.79?

The list price for the trade paperback is $17.00. Not much of a discount either way.

Book is over 4 years old.

[yoho]

Originally Posted by SeaKing

Whenever the claim is for "noble reasons" or "for the greater good" I immediately grab my wallet to keep it safe.

couldn't agree more. i read free books more than those expensive ones.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by Fbone

That's the reason the ebooks cost $10.79?

The list price for the trade paperback is $17.00. Not much of a discount either way.

Book is over 4 years old.

The price for hardback and trade is usually very similar. And yes the ebook price is set relative to existing paper versions. Maybe the book is not selling enough for doing a mass market paperback.

I had actually not heard about these books and I try to follow the field and I go to a lot of sf conventions.

[xg4bx]

Originally Posted by tompe

The price for hardback and trade is usually very similar. And yes the ebook price is set relative to existing paper versions. Maybe the book is not selling enough for doing a mass market paperback.

I had actually not heard about these books and I try to follow the field and I go to a lot of sf conventions.

it's Pyr, they never do mass market. many of their authors are also first timers. needless to say i don't pay retail for their books. i remember the days when authors used to have to work up to and prove themselves worthy of being published in a more expensive format.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by xg4bx

it's Pyr, they never do mass market. many of their authors are also first timers. needless to say i don't pay retail for their books. i remember the days when authors used to have to work up to and prove themselves worthy of being published in a more expensive format.

Ah, that was my impression of Pyr but I was not sure it was always true.

I wonder it it it more common nowaday to have a harcover/trade edition and if so why this have changed. You are right that previously it was authors the sold a certain amount that got hardback publication.

[crossi]

"Not selling enough to do a MM paperback release?" That sounds strange. People don't think a book is worth paying $17 but they might be able to sell the paperbacks for $8. Instead they let it sit, not making any sales until the copyright goes back to the author who can finally make some money by republishing the ebook themselves at a price people will buy.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by crossi

"Not selling enough to do a MM paperback release?" That sounds strange. People don't think a book is worth paying $17 but they might be able to sell the paperbacks for $8. Instead they let it sit, not making any sales until the copyright goes back to the author who can finally make some money by republishing the ebook themselves at a price people will buy.

The potential loss for a MM paperback print run ought to be much bigger than the potential loss for a trade paperback print run. So the risk should be larger for the MM paperback. So nothing strange with not doing a MM paperback print run if they are not selling enough to indicate that a lower price would sell enough for the MM paperback version.

[Sil_liS]

I see that nobody commented on the fact that the author's revenue isn't included in the calculation of how much money everybody gets? Isn't the author the one getting screwed over on this one?

Also I would like to show a different point of view on this:

How much should e-books cost?

"E-books should be an awful lot cheaper than printed books," says Tim Coates, founder of e-books sales and lending site Bilbary, and a former managing director at WH Smith and Waterstone's.

"The cost of getting to the first copy is about the same," he says, referring to the costs of finding an author, paying them and editing their work.

"But thereafter, the economics are nil."

Mr Coates estimates that 60% of the cost of a book is down to printing and distribution