ISBN's for Ebooks

[Millie]

Thank you so much for your responses. They have given me some great knowledge. I am not sure if I am more confused or not.

I tried searching some ISBN's from some ebooks I have and don't see any coming up with multiple formats. This might be because they are older and didn't know about the new rule.

Neil,
Can you give me an ISBN that you know is attached to multiple ebook formats? Also what website do you recommend to search the ISBN?

Thanks a lot!!!

[Stodder]

Would having multiple ISBNs for the same book be a problem when you want it to chart on bestseller lists?

I know some publications (USA Today, if I'm not mistaken) allow indies to chart with ebooks. But will having multiple ISBNs count as different books?

[Stodder]

One more thing (and I hope I'm not hijacking this thread, if so, please tell me off):

Does Amazon bundle different versions with different ISBNs under one product sales position?

[neilmarr]

***Thanks guys. Neil, was that just at BewriteBooks or was it something that other publishers are now doing?***

It's universal, Mark. Kindle, though, doesn't go with ISBNS and instead applies its own code. That's handled in-house by Amazon and costs the publisher nothing. And, of course, we're talking only Mobi edition with them.

The only need for a second ISBN on an ebook is if you update the file significantly or re-release a second edition (same rule applies in print). We're running print and dealing in three digital formats with all the big retailers, most of the minors and many of the new start-ups and all accept a single ebook ISBN regardless of format.

At our own store, you can access a title and be offered four choices at the touch of a button; paperback, PDF, ePub or Mobi. One ISBN for paperback, one different single ISBN overing all digital formats. All our ebooks are DRM-free and will convert. Cheers. Neil

[Stodder]

^ Thank you for sharing how your store works.

[neilmarr]

You're welcome, Stodder. We're not unique, though. Publishing houses handling their own digital conversions will do this if they can and those ebook stores offering more than one format will offer an download option on a single title search.

Amazon's Kindle store doesn't, of course, because they handle only Mobi. But one advantage of their store is that it's in Amazon's interest that a title search will offer print or ebook choices and shares reviews from print and digital readers, so print and ebook becomes cross promotional. Cheers. Neil

[AlexBell]

Originally Posted by neilmarr

Separate ISBNs are assigned to hardback and paperback editions of a title to avoid confusion. No such confusion exists when a third ISBN is applied to all ebook formats.Cheers. Neil

Thanks for your help, Neil, but partly I want to confirm that I understand you, and partly I want to extend my knowledge.

The background is that the US academic for whom I am doing the complex text book apparently wants me to use the same ISBN for the ebook as the one he is using for the print book. I don't know whether the print book will be hard cover or paperback, but let's assume it will be a paperback.

So, the questions
- Am I right in thinking that it is 'best practice' to have different ISBNs for the paperback and ebook versions?
- Says who? Is there a convention or a statutory requirement?
- In fact says who that an author or publisher has to have an ISBN for each book/edition?

Regards, Alex

[Billi]

Alex, using ISBN numbers is not mandatory at all, but it is more than advised. It is the unique identifyer of a book and helps working together with booksellers, libraries, universities, wholesalers and distributors.

Yes, it is best practice to have different ISBNs for the paperback and ebook versions.

Maybe these sites help you to get a better insight (and answer the "says who?"):
http://www.isbn-international.org/ and http://www.isbn.org/standards/home/index.html

[neilmarr]

I agree with Billi, Alex. It's standard industry practice to assign a single ISBN to hardback, paperback and ebook (one ISBN covering all formats). The reason is to make searches more accurate by identifying the form of a work that a broser/buyer needs. Bestests. Neil

[AlexBell]

Originally Posted by Billi

Alex, using ISBN numbers is not mandatory at all, but it is more than advised. It is the unique identifyer of a book and helps working together with booksellers, libraries, universities, wholesalers and distributors.

Yes, it is best practice to have different ISBNs for the paperback and ebook versions.

Maybe these sites help you to get a better insight (and answer the "says who?"):
http://www.isbn-international.org/ and http://www.isbn.org/standards/home/index.html

Thanks, Billi, and Neil. The references you provided, Billi, are very useful.

But still, so far as I can tell it is best practice to use different ISBNs for print book and ebook, but not obligatory. The reason I asked the question was that two different authors have asked me to use the ISBN of their print books when I prepared the ebook version for them. So far as I can tell they are being unwise but not being naughty.

Regards, Alex

[Billi]

The idea to use ISBNs is to have a unique identifier for a certain publication. It helps a lot with organizing the books in databases. And in this sense the ebook version of a book is a different publication than the paperbook version, even if there is no single letter changed inside. In most cases they have a different price, too.
What is the argument of your authors (beside being unwise)? Is it because of the money that they want to use the same ISBN number?

[AlexBell]

Originally Posted by Billi

What is the argument of your authors (beside being unwise)? Is it because of the money that they want to use the same ISBN number?

My only guess is that neither of them know much about ebooks. One of them wants me to put the same colophon on the ebook as he uses for the dead tree version, and which gives the number of pages and the size in centimetres.

Regards, Alex

[neilmarr]

***Neil, Can you give me an ISBN that you know is attached to multiple ebook formats?***

Pop into the bookstore section of our own website, Millie (http://www.bewrite.net) and click on any book cover. You'll see that you're directed to a 'buy' page (it also includes book notes, free extract, author bio, reviews, etc) where one ISBN offers paperback and another a choice of ebook formats. Cheers. Neil

[douglsmith]

Pop into the bookstore section of our own website, Millie (http://www.bewrite.net) and click on any book cover. You'll see that you're directed to a 'buy' page (it also includes book notes, free extract, author bio, reviews, etc) where one ISBN offers paperback and another a choice of ebook formats. Cheers. Neil

I just went to that URL and clicked on the link for "Book Store". That page lists several new releases. When I click on those book covers I see that they all have a different ISBN for each e-book format.

When I then click on the genre list at the left and examine some of those books they have a single ISBN for all of the e-book formats.

So have you changed your practice to now use multiple ISBNs?

[blackash]

Hi douglsmith, neilmarr stated that in message 3 that they brought multiple ISBNs for the different formats of ebook's title but now they only use one ISBN for the ebook version no matter how it's formatted, but have a different ISBN for the paper back version and another ISBN for the Hard cover version.

Once an ISBN is assigned and books are sold for that ISBN, it can't be reassigned. So I guess that is why they still have some of the ebooks with more than one ISBN.