Kindle store: Indies avoid DRM to reach wider audience

[tompe]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Yes they can.
(That is how the BPHs forced them to submit to the conspiracy and how they forced them to make TTS optional, at publishers' discretion.)

Yes, but the world have changed. The income from Amazon to authors have increased to higher levels so this is probably not an option anymore.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by tompe

Yes, but the world have changed. The income from Amazon to authors have increased to higher levels so this is probably not an option anymore.

Authors and small trad publishers are the biggest believers in DRM and the ones with the best antitrust case if Amazon forces them to ditch DRM. DRM is a feature of the product and as such the producer dictates its use.

They really *can't* force anybody to drop DRM any more that they can force TTS support. And TTS adds value to the *platform* as well as the book.

Not. Doable.
Really.
Trying would open a legal can of worms and since the vast majority of buyers don't care, there is no need.

[Mivo]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Trying would open a legal can of worms and since the vast majority of buyers don't care, there is no need.

Not only that, but DRM does benefit Amazon insofar that the average e-book reader who buys at Amazon will continue to stick to Kindle devices because they don't want to lose access to their purchases (and don't know about Alf or simply, and just as likely, don't want to deal with DRM removal and the legal aspects of it). DRM is win-win for Amazon: more hardware sales, and customers remain bound to the store.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Trying would open a legal can of worms and since the vast majority of buyers don't care, there is no need.

I really do not get how not providing a specific service to the customers (the publishers) can lead to legal problems. If there are contracts saying stuff then they just respect the contract until it runs out and not sign any more contracts for DRM ebooks.

[MikeB1972]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

As the article clearly states, it is not up to Amazon whether a book is DRM'ED or not; it is up to the publisher. So they can't choose to abolish DRM.
And as the article points out, indie publishers correctly see DRM-free as added value. So do readers, even those without Pavlovian reactions to the very mention of the term.

Well, 19 of the top 100 are DRM free, which means 81 of the top 100 have DRM. So all this seems to prove is that the average person buying books doesn't give a damn about DRM one way or another, if you just look at it as a blind statistic then 81% of people prefer DRM'd books

Frankly, DRM is so easy to remove for anyone that really cares that I doubt general buying habits are affected at all (Yes, some people here are a special case), I mean, I buy TOR books, but I also bought them before they were DRM free. As near as I can tell DRM is fullfilling it's intended purpose, Which is to stop casual sharing - or what amounts to casual sharing these days (which could be posting the book on your facebook page for 3 million of your closest friends).

Until some big name author releases a book DRM free (someone with a guaranteed approximate readership no matter how good the book is - Brown, Patterson, Cussler, someone like that) and sales are compared with the average of the previous books we won't really know how the publishers cash cows will be affected, could be huge, could be no change at all. If a publisher tries this I doubt sales will go up for top sellers but, if they don't tank, some accountact may add everything up and decide that the money saved on applying the DRM is worth ditching the bloody thing. Stephen King may try it, he's tried serialised, e-only, p-only, pulp paperback only etc, no reason to think he wouldn't give a punt at DRM free.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by MikeB1972

Well, 19 of the top 100 are DRM free, which means 81 of the top 100 have DRM. So all this seems to prove is that the average person buying books doesn't give a damn about DRM one way or another, if you just look at it as a blind statistic then 81% of people prefer DRM'd books

A good chunk of those people don't even know that DRM exists let alone what it is or if a book on Amazon has it or not.

[GreenMonkey]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

A good chunk of those people don't even know that DRM exists let alone what it is or if a book on Amazon has it or not.

And honestly a lot of these people wouldn't even know how to get a .mobi file onto the Kindle app on their tablet or phone.

[MikeB1972]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

A good chunk of those people don't even know that DRM exists let alone what it is or if a book on Amazon has it or not.

Pretty much my point

[Josieb1]

I'm lucky I read romance and specialist genres, I have multiple points of purchase for the same book, and at my last check I was buying regularly from about 6 or 7 small independent publishers and ebook retailers.

I could buy from Amazon, or iBooks, or B&N, Kobo etc but I don't as all the other places I buy from sell DRM free books, plus with some publishers I can download multiple formats whenever I want. So that's where my money goes.

[Ken.Hagdal]

Originally Posted by Mivo

Not only that, but DRM does benefit Amazon insofar that the average e-book reader who buys at Amazon will continue to stick to Kindle devices because they don't want to lose access to their purchases (and don't know about Alf or simply, and just as likely, don't want to deal with DRM removal and the legal aspects of it). DRM is win-win for Amazon: more hardware sales, and customers remain bound to the store.

I don't know what's Amazon current pricing policy on Kindles but a couple of years ago, they were selling some models at cost and others at a loss. Their goal so far has always been to swallow the biggest share of the e-book market no matter the collaterals. Which is also why they cut into their profit with their regular price wars.

If the average ebook buyer knew/cared about DRM and was vocal about how it puts them off buying ebooks, I'd bet anything they would make it mandatory for publishers to upload DRM free books. Like they did with the music industry and mp3's. They already have a positive experience of digital goods sold without protection. I doubt they would have qualms about adopting the same business model for books.

[Alexander Turcic]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

A good chunk of those people don't even know that DRM exists...

Unless they ever want to switch to a competitor's device and continue access their Kindle purchases...

[soulfuldog]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

DRM is no big deal for me. I have a Kindle and get most of my books from the Kindle store. I'm quite happy with this arrangement and see no need to change.

Originally Posted by bookmole

DRM implies that you are a criminal, that you cannot be trusted to own a piece of electronica without sharing it, without depriving Amazon of money. They do not care about their workers, they do not care about their customers, they do not care about anything - except their profit.

Be a sheep. When copyrighted items are removed from your Kindle by Amazon, with or without cause, may you be happy then.

The only person baaa-ing in this case is bookmole....

Besides, tubemonkey is obviously chattering and not baaa-ing

[Fluribus]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

They really *can't* force anybody to drop DRM any more that they can force TTS support.

Doesn't Amazon own the format? Couldn't Amazon simply remove DRM as an option?

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by Fluribus

Doesn't Amazon own the format? Couldn't Amazon simply remove DRM as an option?

Sure, they could remove the option. Would the big publishers and the authors who demand DRM still sell their books through Amazon? The publishers have used the threat of the removal of their books from the Kindle store as a hammer to get what they want before, they likely would again and Amazon would cave.

Besides as DRM agnostic as Amazon might be for books others sell in their Kindle store if I'm remembering correctly most (all?) titles published by Amazon do have DRM (could be wrong on that).

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by Mivo

BM's point was that DRM means that you don't really "own" an e-book you buy, only a license to read it, and with specific conditions that could be changed. Amazon can remove the book from your device. Will they? Extremely unlikely. But should they be able to do that after you paid money?

So why didn't BM (BookMole?) say that or anything like it?

DRM implies that you are a criminal, that you cannot be trusted to own a piece of electronica without sharing it, without depriving Amazon of money. They do not care about their workers, they do not care about their customers, they do not care about anything - except their profit.

Be a sheep. When copyrighted items are removed from your Kindle by Amazon, with or without cause, may you be happy then.

From what I can see BookMole resents being treated like a criminal. I am sure he doesn't shop in any stores because they have cameras, or use the library because they have scanners. Probably doesn't use a bank because they lock most of the money in a safe.

And of course he doesn't lock his doors because then he would be treating others as if the might be criminals.


Helen