![]() |
#16 | |
Grand Master of Flowers
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,201
Karma: 8389072
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Naptown
Device: Kindle PW, Kindle 3 (aka Keyboard), iPhone, iPad 3 (not for reading)
|
Quote:
*Overall,* sales tripled, e-books outsold paperbacks, and agency pricing didn't seem to have much effect. One example of people being price sensitive is meaningless when compared with the aggregate. (Although of course it may matter to James Patterson). That's how statistics work. I |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#17 | |
Ebook Reader
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 605
Karma: 3205128
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Texas
Device: Kindle 3, HTC Evo, HTC View
|
Quote:
"Unsurprisingly, when prices went up on agency-priced books, sales immediately shifted away from agency publishers and towards the rest of our store. In fact, since agency prices went into effect on some e-books in the US, unit sales of books priced under the agency model have slowed to nearly half the rate of growth of the rest of Kindle book sales." |
|
![]() |
![]() |
Advert | |
|
![]() |
#18 |
Groupie
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 188
Karma: 2088290
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Ireland
Device: Kindle Paperwhite
|
Angst :: Brilliant piece of info .. Thanks !!
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#19 | |
Groupie
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 188
Karma: 2088290
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Ireland
Device: Kindle Paperwhite
|
Quote:
In my local music shops they are still selling CDs of recent albums for $20 ! and a lot of middle rating CDs are still $13 or more. This is why piracy of music is alive and well. Sadly the publishing industry seems to have learnt nothing. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#20 |
Member
![]() ![]() Posts: 24
Karma: 168
Join Date: Jan 2011
Device: nook color
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
Advert | |
|
![]() |
#21 |
Out of print
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 487
Karma: 1549538
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Madrid, Spain
Device: Sony PRS-500 (recycled), Pocketbook Inkpad X Pro
|
Is anybody happy with the agency model? I mean, besides the big five.
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#22 |
Guru
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 618
Karma: 493394
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Seattle, WA
Device: iRex iLiad, Onyx Boox 60
|
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#23 | |
Banned
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 760
Karma: 51034
Join Date: Feb 2009
|
Quote:
Agency pricing has been well outlined in the thread but it does not apply to the eBay model it also does not apply to other venues such as a flea market/swap meet where the venue only provides a location for the independent sellers to conduct business. Sellers do not even sell under the license of the venue. I suppose it could be argued a consignment shop is a form of "agency pricing" but I don't think it fits what is being discussed here as in consignment shops the shop has latitude in what they actually sell the item for, they can bargain with potential buyers. Still a consignment shop is closer to the agency model being discussed in this thread than pure venues. The Amazon Marketplace is also just a venue as well and the relationship between Marketplace sellers and Amazon are different legally than the relationship with the Agency 5 publishers. Just wanted to make the distinction that eBay sells no products what-so-ever. Ebay also is not directly part of the transaction with the consumer unless there is a problem and then they attempt to moderate any issues. Amazon is a retailer who also has what amounts to a hybrid-marketplace with a mix of different types of sellers plus Amazon is a seller in the same marketplace. Last edited by snipenekkid; 02-10-2011 at 08:19 PM. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#24 |
Evangelist
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 435
Karma: 24326
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Kobo
|
The thing that is anti-free market about it is that (almost) all of the big publishers worked together to impose the agency model. Essentially, they acted as a shared monopoly to fix the prices.
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#25 | |||
Grand Master of Flowers
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,201
Karma: 8389072
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Naptown
Device: Kindle PW, Kindle 3 (aka Keyboard), iPhone, iPad 3 (not for reading)
|
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Those are two different and unrelated points. Most of the big publishers went to the agency model. Where is the evidence that they have unlawfully fixed prices? |
|||
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#26 |
Wizard
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 3,032
Karma: 11196738
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Where am I?
Device: Kindle Paperwhite Signature edition and a Samsung S24 Ultra
|
Folks I was looking for a discussion of facts not an argument about the ethics of agency pricing. Facts just are wether you agree with them or not. I notice in the list of the Agency pricing companies that it does not involve some of the companies I deal with all of the time including a division of Harlequin Books called Golden Eagle. They are a company that makes and sells, frequently direct to their customers, a bunch of series books: Executioner, Super Bolan, Deathlands, Outlands, Stony Man and Rogue Angel. http://readgoldeagle.blogspot.com and http://mackbolan.com
Last edited by jbcohen; 02-11-2011 at 09:01 AM. |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#27 |
Resident Curmudgeon
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 79,763
Karma: 145864619
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts
Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3
|
One thing that was left out of the Agency model...
There can be no sales/discounts on agency eBooks. Fictionwise had a business model that worked well. But since the agency nonsense, Fictionwise had to give that up. |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#28 | |
Evangelist
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 435
Karma: 24326
Join Date: Jun 2010
Device: Kobo
|
Quote:
I think it's pretty clear to everyone, that since the prices of books from all of the publishers instantly shot up by 30% under the "Agency Model" that the competitive element had been effectively removed from the pricing. It's also clear, over the fullness of time, that this has been detrimental to the consumer, since the prices haven't dropped and there are no sales and so, and so on. The bit about "unlawfully" fixing prices is your own issue to deal with. I never commented on the lawfulness of the act. However, since you brought it up Andrew, I guess it's fair to assume that you found this action, if not technically illegal, at least immoral. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#29 | |
Zealot
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 140
Karma: 379182
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Charleston, SC
Device: Kindle for PC
|
Quote:
However, I can set pretty much any price I like. I can find whatever number maximizes my sales/profit and price in accordance to that. Amazon has the freedom to set their cut however they like and use that to leverage the publisher into a set of prices. If you price from 2.99-9.99, you get 70% of the price. If you price below 2.99 or above 9.99, you get 35%. Now, when you see ebook prices higher than that and with a pbook at a price lower, you see publishers shooting themselves in the foot to try and keep pbooks alive. As a side note: Technically a free market is any situation with near unlimited buyers and sellers, and no external body setting the price of any given item, thus allowing the "true price" of an item to be found. Ebay is probably as close as most of us will ever get to one. Agency pricing, where the agent can set whatever cut he likes, and the producer can set any price he likes only stops being a free market if no one else can sell the good in question. So, for any given book, it's not a free market, but for books as a category, it is. Last edited by Keryl Raist; 02-11-2011 at 03:28 PM. |
|
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
#30 | ||
Grand Master of Flowers
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Posts: 2,201
Karma: 8389072
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Naptown
Device: Kindle PW, Kindle 3 (aka Keyboard), iPhone, iPad 3 (not for reading)
|
Quote:
Quote:
Since you were complaining about the shared monopoly fixing prices, I assumed that you meant that there was some sort of problem with it. After all, people do use "price fixing" as a shorthand for a criminal violation of the antitrust act. Or do you just mean that someone other than the seller should set the seller's prices? |
||
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
|
![]() |
||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
UK Agency Pricing? | suecsi | News | 22 | 11-03-2010 05:16 AM |
Agency pricing coming to the UK | Ben Thornton | News | 1 | 10-15-2010 06:59 AM |
Is Agency Pricing Coming to UK? | Fbone | News | 50 | 09-26-2010 10:47 PM |
Wasn't agency pricing supposed to mean the same prices everywhere? | AnemicOak | General Discussions | 22 | 05-14-2010 12:40 AM |
Agency pricing in Canada | ficbot | General Discussions | 1 | 04-09-2010 01:32 PM |