Pressure Mounting for Judge Cote to Reject E-Book Settlement

[Barcey]

It's funny, when Amazon was young and the big boys started up websites the pundits were all predicting that Amazon would be squashed like a bug. Jeff Bezos' message to the staff was to focus on the customers and not the media.

Now when the big boys are looking up at the big shoe, the message isn't focus on the customer. It's we need price protection or evil Amazon will take over the world.

This isn't about big bad Amazon. It's about packaging better customer services and experience. If these huge corporations can't do that I don't feel sorry for them.

[Sydney's Mom]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

The DoJ has explicitly stated that agency pricing is legal, and should be allowed to continue.

Again, agency pricing levels the playing field for retailers, and the Big Six did not collude with Apple to drive small publishers out of business. It is legal for producers to set required prices on their goods. Agency pricing is not inherently anticompetitive.

The alleged illegal behavior was ultimately only in the collusion over the timing of the switch. That's why Random House is not being charged in the antitrust action, and is not required to change its pricing policies.

To put it another way: The publishers should not be prevented from using a legal pricing method as punishment for collusion, and the DoJ should not degrade competition (and inexplicably favor Amazon) in order to fix anti-competitive behavior.

If the publishers did in fact collude illegally, they should be fined and heavily supervised to prevent future collusion, much as is done in other antitrust actions.

Agreed, the 6 and Apple did not drive a small publisher our of business. But let's not ascribe benevolent motives to the 6 or Apple. Apple wanted to sell ebooks without having to deal with the free market. And the 6 didn't like the direction the free market was going. So they both opted out. That is fine, there are plenty of goods that are not subject to normal competitive pressures. But those are usually goods for a single seller (Tiffany, Coach, etc). But when you collude, and collude with a distributor to the detriment of the public, you have broken the law. I don't see how the agency arrangement can survive, unless the judge is part of the Amazon histeria.

[Sydney's Mom]

Agency is not going to save independent bookstores! Windowing Under the Dome did nothing to save independent bookstores! That ship has sailed. How many independent record stores do you see these days? What is in the place of your local Blockbuster? Itunes is even having a problem selling music - apparently streaming is more popular than buying.

Things are changing, very fast and very permanently. I used to carry an atlas in my car - now I use my navi. I used to have to browse the library - now I just check the NYT bestseller list, or look for what I saw on Mahr. I used to watch a movie review program - now I just look at the review and first 5 minutes on my DVR.

The publishers are trying to slow progress in book publishing and consumption. When navigation systems became common, did the mapmakers raise the price of maps? No, they figured out how to digitize them and continue to offer more features.

A lot of industries have taken it on the chin in the technological revolution. Stationary manufacturers - stationary is now a niche product. Notebooks. I used to carry a notebook in my car - now I can just type it in my phone. Phonebooks! 411! Instead of trying to stop technology, publishers should set up hardcovers as niche products. Some people will never make the switch to digital, and would be happy to pay more to get a "real book."

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by Sydney's Mom

A lot of industries have taken it on the chin in the technological revolution.
...

Instead of trying to stop technology, publishers should set up hardcovers as niche products. Some people will never make the switch to digital, and would be happy to pay more to get a "real book."

That's very difficult to do when 83% of your customers still read in print.

It's also difficult to transition well when you need to keep both customers happy. No one can afford to lose present and potential customers.

[stonetools]

Originally Posted by Fbone

That's very difficult to do when 83% of your customers still read in print.

It's also difficult to transition well when you need to keep both customers happy. No one can afford to lose present and potential customers.

This.

On this forum, you might be forgiven for thinking that most everybody has ALREADY moved to ebook readers.

[sabredog]

Originally Posted by stonetools

This.

On this forum, you might be forgiven for thinking that most everybody has ALREADY moved to ebook readers.

Well, this forum is called mobileread not deadtreeread.

Pretty much explains the format preferences of most forum members.

[kennyc]

well the operative word in "deadtree publishing" is "dead," eh?

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kennyc

well the operative word in "deadtree publishing" is "dead," eh?

Why do you say that? The major publishers are making healthy profits, and the vast majority of their income comes from paper books. It's perhaps easy to get a distorted view of the publishing world here at MR; eBooks are still very much a minority interest.

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Why do you say that? The major publishers are making healthy profits, and the vast majority of their income comes from paper books. It's perhaps easy to get a distorted view of the publishing world here at MR; eBooks are still very much a minority interest.

True at this very moment, but pbooks are starting to look like Blackberries 2 years ago. You see the tidal wave coming but nobody is running. Everybody says, hey, "look how beautiful it is here on the beach".

E-books have gone from almost 0 to more than 20% in just 2 years. They might very well go to 80% in another two. Manufacturers of printing presses are going bankrupt right now. Everybody must get ready, saying "pbooks are still the vast majority of sales" doesn't cut it. We all know that won't last long. And just blaming it all on Amazon won't do them any good, either.

[sabredog]

Fairfax here has downgraded physical newspaper production in preference to digital, closing down completely printing plants in Melbourne.

[Soldim]

Originally Posted by sabredog

Well, this forum is called mobileread not deadtreeread.

Pretty much explains the format preferences of most forum members.

It definitely explains the format preferences -- one would have hoped a bunch of well read individuals would be intelligent enough to distinguish between their preferences and those of the population in general

[Sil_liS]

Originally Posted by Fbone

That's very difficult to do when 83% of your customers still read in print.

It's also difficult to transition well when you need to keep both customers happy. No one can afford to lose present and potential customers.

But shouldn't the industry plan for the future? The big publishers' current plan seems to be focused on slowing down ebook acceptance.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Yes, it is price fixing. But price fixing is not always necessarily a bad thing, and is not itself illegal.

But it is collusion and that is illegal.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Oh, I agree. But it's important to note that it's the cartel that's illegal, not the price fixing.

The agency model would never have worked if just one of the BPHs did it first. The customers would just shop elsewhere. The others would see this and not go agency. So in this case, it did have to be all or nothing and the all is what is illegal.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

If the publishers did in fact collude illegally, they should be fined and heavily supervised to prevent future collusion, much as is done in other antitrust actions.

The DoJ should make it that if the BPHs want to go back to agency, that they have to do it one at a time and do it no less then a year a part. Now we know what will happen to the first BPH to do that. They would lose sales big time and if that sort of stipulation was put in place, the agency model would be dead.