KFX and Amazon's policies

[Little.Egret]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Then why did the author choose that price?
Amazon does not discount ebooks. The author or publisher is the one that chooses the price. So they get what they want.

Not so. If there is no "price set by the publisher" line then Amazon can discount their selling price for an ebook in just the same way as for a pbook.

The author and publisher get the same amount.

Here we go

The Spark by David Drake (Baen Books)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075X27FCV/

https://www.ereaderiq.com/dp/B075X27FCV/the-spark/
We started tracking this book on September 28, 2017.
This book was $9.99 when we started tracking it.
The price of this book has changed one time in the past 82 days.
The current price of this book is $7.99 last checked 6 hours ago.
==

Even better discount on Amazon UK

The price on the Baen ebook site remains $US9.99

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Little.Egret

Not so. If there is no "price set by the publisher" line then Amazon can discount their selling price for an ebook in just the same way as for a pbook.

The author and publisher get the same amount.

Here we go

The Spark by David Drake (Baen Books)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075X27FCV/

https://www.ereaderiq.com/dp/B075X27FCV/the-spark/
We started tracking this book on September 28, 2017.
This book was $9.99 when we started tracking it.
The price of this book has changed one time in the past 82 days.
The current price of this book is $7.99 last checked 6 hours ago.
==

Even better discount on Amazon UK

The price on the Baen ebook site remains $US9.99

Check Google Books for the price match.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Little.Egret

Not so. If there is no "price set by the publisher" line then Amazon can discount their selling price for an ebook in just the same way as for a pbook.

The author and publisher get the same amount.

Here we go

The Spark by David Drake (Baen Books)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075X27FCV/

https://www.ereaderiq.com/dp/B075X27FCV/the-spark/
We started tracking this book on September 28, 2017.
This book was $9.99 when we started tracking it.
The price of this book has changed one time in the past 82 days.
The current price of this book is $7.99 last checked 6 hours ago.
==

Even better discount on Amazon UK

The price on the Baen ebook site remains $US9.99

Yes, they do. But only when they price match.
As to your book you mentioned: a book is on sale. Where is the proof that Amazon changed it?
Is it your book? Do you know who controls the book? Are you saying Baen never discounts?

Yes, I have seen Amazon change a price. They were price-matching Google.
It also cost that author a pretty penny.

[Cinisajoy]

Unless you can prove that a company did something, do not correct me.
Ereaderiq is never proof.
Guess what, prices vary between stores.
Either words from author or publisher, cause third party doesn't count.
You said David Drake...
I know he goes on sale once in a while.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Little.Egret

Not so. If there is no "price set by the publisher" line then Amazon can discount their selling price for an ebook in just the same way as for a pbook.

The author and publisher get the same amount.

Here we go

The Spark by David Drake (Baen Books)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075X27FCV/

https://www.ereaderiq.com/dp/B075X27FCV/the-spark/
We started tracking this book on September 28, 2017.
This book was $9.99 when we started tracking it.
The price of this book has changed one time in the past 82 days.
The current price of this book is $7.99 last checked 6 hours ago.
==

Even better discount on Amazon UK

The price on the Baen ebook site remains $US9.99

They rarely price match paper and that is per customer not for site.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Then why did the author choose that price?
Amazon does not discount ebooks. The author or publisher is the one that chooses the price. So they get what they want.



Do you make sure everything you buy is full price?
You do realize most books in KU that go on free were either .99 cents or 2.99. In which case the author is choosing to lose either .35 or $2.

You know perfectly well why they choose to put books for free. In the hopes that you like the book enough to pay for the next one. And they also know that not every free book will result in a sale afterwards. So no big deal if you go ahead and "buy" it then. Of course, to give you an excuse to sleep better at night your concience is completely clear. After all they choose and agree for setting the price to zero, so it is what they want.

And I still don't agree how you are advocating that KU is way to expensive since nobody should pay for it as we should all do like you do. KU is not for everybody - it is great for those that are able to find enough to read to pay less than the sum of purchase prices.

Am I making sure all I buy is full price? That is something else entirely. A discount is cutting into the profits per sale. It is not eliminating the profit completely. Selling things on discount can be used to maximise profit over all (by selling more units). If you discount to zero, then you are not cutting into your profit, but eliminating it completely. Do you see the difference?

[Little.Egret]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Unless you can prove that a company did something, do not correct me.
Ereaderiq is never proof.
Guess what, prices vary between stores.
Either words from author or publisher, cause third party doesn't count.
You said David Drake...
I know he goes on sale once in a while.

What's your problem?

That Amazon is able to discount can be deduced from there being no "price set by the publisher" line.

EreaderIQ shows the history of this ebook with the discount about a month after hc publication.

Baen agreed with Amazon in December 2012 that their ebook cover price for books published in hc would be $9.99
http://www.baen.com/baenebooks
sorry site down

Amazon shows the hc pbook at $16.51 discounted from $25.00 cover
https://www.amazon.com/Spark-David-D...dp/B075X27FCV/

Amazon don't tell publisher or author about this.

Same for e-books.

Both publisher and author are paid based on cover price (I asked a different author).

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Little.Egret

What's your problem?

That Amazon is able to discount can be deduced from there being no "price set by the publisher" line.

EreaderIQ shows the history of this ebook with the discount about a month after hc publication.

Baen agreed with Amazon in December 2012 that their ebook cover price for books published in hc would be $9.99
http://www.baen.com/baenebooks
sorry site down

Amazon shows the hc pbook at $16.51 discounted from $25.00 cover
https://www.amazon.com/Spark-David-D...dp/B075X27FCV/

Amazon don't tell publisher or author about this.

Same for e-books.

Both publisher and author are paid based on cover price (I asked a different author).

Ok thanks for the clarification.

Oh and problem, tis the season to be hormonal so my apologies.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

You know perfectly well why they choose to put books for free. In the hopes that you like the book enough to pay for the next one. And they also know that not every free book will result in a sale afterwards. So no big deal if you go ahead and "buy" it then. Of course, to give you an excuse to sleep better at night your concience is completely clear. After all they choose and agree for setting the price to zero, so it is what they want.

And I still don't agree how you are advocating that KU is way to expensive since nobody should pay for it as we should all do like you do. KU is not for everybody - it is great for those that are able to find enough to read to pay less than the sum of purchase prices.

Am I making sure all I buy is full price? That is something else entirely. A discount is cutting into the profits per sale. It is not eliminating the profit completely. Selling things on discount can be used to maximise profit over all (by selling more units). If you discount to zero, then you are not cutting into your profit, but eliminating it completely. Do you see the difference?

You misread my post. I wasn't advocating KU.
I said if a book is in KU, there is a very good chance that it will be on sale (not necessarily free) 5 days out of every 90 days. It is a "perk" of being in KU.
I wouldn't give negative 2 cents for most books in KU. Or at least not the last time I looked. Things may have changed.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

You misread my post. I wasn't advocating KU.
I said if a book is in KU, there is a very good chance that it will be on sale (not necessarily free) 5 days out of every 90 days. It is a "perk" of being in KU.
I wouldn't give negative 2 cents for most books in KU. Or at least not the last time I looked. Things may have changed.

What did I misread?

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Are you liking KU? I never found a use for it. Three reasons: one was the lack of good books though I think it has gotten a bit better. Two: because many books in KU go free for 5 days within the 90 day window. Third and this may have changed but too many non-books.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

What did I misread?

You originally quoted a different post of mine.
That was why I responded.
That one I won't deny.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

You originally quoted a different post of mine.
That was why I responded.
That one I won't deny.

You cannot take one post out of context with your following posts if it is a fluid conversation. Others have caught on as well as to what you are trying to suggest. I simply said that I don't agree with the philosophy behind it.

And for the record, the best way to get free books that normally cost money is to use your library as you already paid for them indirectly through taxes.

[darryl]

A couple of points worth making. Duckie, you and I seem to agree on many things, but I'm afraid guilt for picking up a free or heavily discounted book is not one of them. Free and heavily discounted ebooks are part of a marketing strategy and an effective one. To quote from your post #126:

Am I making sure all I buy is full price? That is something else entirely. A discount is cutting into the profits per sale. It is not eliminating the profit completely. Selling things on discount can be used to maximise profit over all (by selling more units). If you discount to zero, then you are not cutting into your profit, but eliminating it completely. Do you see the difference?

But of course you are foregoing profit only on that particular book, in the hope of increasing overall profit over a number of books. It is just another form of promotion, and a far less costly and more attractive one in the case of an ebook. And except for perma-free, only for a limited time. Even a reader who downloads a free ebook without any intention of purchasing further works from that particular author can become a new paying reader. Offering free or heavily discounted books is a valuable tool for discovery. Authors often take a similar approach with some books available in KU and others not. I am currently reading an excellent series where the first book was free in KU, but later books are sold for between $3.99 and $5.99. If Pepsi was to give away a free can of its product to Coke drinkers or vice versa, why on earth would anyone feel guilty for taking it. They are sacrificing in that case not only their profit but also bearing the cost of it, in the hope of taking customers from their rival. The customer is agreeing to try the rival product, which they would not otherwise have done.

[DuckieTigger]

Originally Posted by darryl

A couple of points worth making. Duckie, you and I seem to agree on many things, but I'm afraid guilt for picking up a free or heavily discounted book is not one of them. Free and heavily discounted ebooks are part of a marketing strategy and an effective one. To quote from your post #126:

But of course you are foregoing profit only on that particular book, in the hope of increasing overall profit over a number of books.

Aye, that is where we both have to agree to disagree. I see a difference between a discounted book that is cheaper and one that goes free. If you are unsure about a book, there is always a free sample you can read which should give you plenty idea if you are willing to pay for the whole book or not. If a book is barely good enough to pay nothing for it, then why bother to read it in the first place.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

Aye, that is where we both have to agree to disagree. I see a difference between a discounted book that is cheaper and one that goes free. If you are unsure about a book, there is always a free sample you can read which should give you plenty idea if you are willing to pay for the whole book or not. If a book is barely good enough to pay nothing for it, then why bother to read it in the first place.

I have to jump in and say that most samples do not give you enough of the book to decide is like it or not. I've read a lot of books where the beginning was a bit slow and then it picked up and was a good read. But samples won't help in those cases. Also, sometimes with all the stuff before the actually start of the book, you get hardly enough left to make an informed decision.

Sometimes a book goes on sale to entice you to buy at a discounted price. Most of the time it's the first book of a series so if you buy it and enjoy it, you'll buy the other books in the series. Even if it's not a book in a series, it's done to get you to try the author and hopefully buy the author's other books.