Where are UK people buying their epub's from?

carpii · 02-16-2010, 03:18 AM

I bought a Sony PRS-505 some time ago, and have enjoyed a lot of free and public domain texts.

But sometimes I just want a good Stephen King novel, or something by a popular author.

Sony promote Waterstones as their official store, but the selection of ebooks there is dire (and in some categories they're simply selling public domain ebooks for £2 a pop).

Theres also WH Smiths site, which doesn't really have a lot of epub's.
I know I can convert formats etc, which I'm reasonably happy to do, but Id also like to give a Sony Reader as a gift to someone who isnt going to have the patience or tech savvy to mess with all that.

Are there any other stores I can buy epubs from?
All the American retail sites Ive found will not sell ebooks to the UK, even though Id be happy to pay in $.

Am I missing something? or is the UK ebook market really as half baked as it appears to me

Thanks

EowynCarter · 02-16-2010, 03:39 AM

Quote:

Am I missing something? or is the UK ebook market really as half baked as it appears to me

Less that the french one

You can also use diesel books, books on board.

colinsky · 02-16-2010, 04:12 AM

Other UK epub sources:

http://www.foyles.co.uk/
http://www.booksonboard.co.uk/
http://www.penguin.co.uk/

millicent · 02-16-2010, 05:02 AM

I think that the problem you have is that of geography. Most authors have a contract that is geographically limited. If you take a best seller eg Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall then she has a contract in the UK with Harper Collins which allows them to sell the book in the UK and English speaking countries in other parts of the world (except Canada and the USA).

If you happen to be a Canadian or an American then you get a different edition of the book. If you log onto, let us say, Amazon.com then they look at the IP address that you are coming from and they know that you are in the UK so they will only offer you the Harper Collins version of the ebook. If you were coming in from a US IP address then they would offer you the Henry Holt version of the book (ie the one published in the US). So to say that you are willing to pay in USD misses the point - Amazon (or whoever) are simply not allowed to sell the book outside of their territory.

It may sound crazy, it may be crazy, but that is the law.

As an aside, actually having an EPUB reader in the UK is a good idea. The local library services are beginning to offer loans of a pretty wide range of books and they favour the EPUB format, so don't despair.

Millicent

Direct Ebooks · 02-19-2010, 10:25 AM

Hi Carpii.

Feel free to check us out at www.directebooks.com.We're based in Ireland

Let me know if you have any questions or requests.

Regards

Gareth

cian · 02-24-2010, 07:23 AM

Waterstones has a pretty reasonable selection, doesn't it?

02-16-2010, 03:18 AM	#1
carpii Enthusiast Posts: 38 Karma: 16 Join Date: Nov 2008 Device: Iliad or Sony	Where are UK people buying their epub's from? I bought a Sony PRS-505 some time ago, and have enjoyed a lot of free and public domain texts. But sometimes I just want a good Stephen King novel, or something by a popular author. Sony promote Waterstones as their official store, but the selection of ebooks there is dire (and in some categories they're simply selling public domain ebooks for £2 a pop). Theres also WH Smiths site, which doesn't really have a lot of epub's. I know I can convert formats etc, which I'm reasonably happy to do, but Id also like to give a Sony Reader as a gift to someone who isnt going to have the patience or tech savvy to mess with all that. Are there any other stores I can buy epubs from? All the American retail sites Ive found will not sell ebooks to the UK, even though Id be happy to pay in $. Am I missing something? or is the UK ebook market really as half baked as it appears to me Thanks

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02-16-2010, 04:12 AM	#3
colinsky Addict Posts: 240 Karma: 3500000 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: Sony PRS-300, PRS-T1, PRS-T3	Other UK epub sources: http://www.foyles.co.uk/ http://www.booksonboard.co.uk/ http://www.penguin.co.uk/

02-16-2010, 05:02 AM	#4
millicent Member Posts: 19 Karma: 202 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: Kindle, iPod and iRiver Story	I think that the problem you have is that of geography. Most authors have a contract that is geographically limited. If you take a best seller eg Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall then she has a contract in the UK with Harper Collins which allows them to sell the book in the UK and English speaking countries in other parts of the world (except Canada and the USA). If you happen to be a Canadian or an American then you get a different edition of the book. If you log onto, let us say, Amazon.com then they look at the IP address that you are coming from and they know that you are in the UK so they will only offer you the Harper Collins version of the ebook. If you were coming in from a US IP address then they would offer you the Henry Holt version of the book (ie the one published in the US). So to say that you are willing to pay in USD misses the point - Amazon (or whoever) are simply not allowed to sell the book outside of their territory. It may sound crazy, it may be crazy, but that is the law. As an aside, actually having an EPUB reader in the UK is a good idea. The local library services are beginning to offer loans of a pretty wide range of books and they favour the EPUB format, so don't despair. Millicent

02-19-2010, 10:25 AM	#5
Direct Ebooks Hibernian eBook Warrior Posts: 184 Karma: 1264 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Cork, Ireland Device: Sony Reader	Hi Carpii. Feel free to check us out at www.directebooks.com.We're based in Ireland Let me know if you have any questions or requests. Regards Gareth

02-24-2010, 07:23 AM	#6
cian Enthusiast Posts: 46 Karma: 602 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Hove, UK Device: sony prs505	Waterstones has a pretty reasonable selection, doesn't it?