HarperCollins Pursues E-Book Subscription Service With Scribd

[kennyc]

You're talking about the Kindle Lending library requiring exclusivity, which is true, but the borrowing of books from the local library via kindle is limited only by the library policies.

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by kennyc

You're talking about the Kindle Lending library requiring exclusivity, which is true, but the borrowing of books from the local library via kindle is limited only by the library policies.

Yes, but the library is also limited by availability. It's a good program and I like it. About half the books I have borrowed would not use Amazon--I had to sideload. Not a problem. The biggest issue is that there are not many books available that I want. I wouldn't mind paying for a lending library that actually had a LOT of books. My library has improved since the start of the lending, but by and large, the majority of books I look up are not available for lending. I am completely onboard that publishers and authors need to make money from the programs, but right now there isn't a happy medium.

[fjtorres]

I don't think a subscription service for ebooks is going to work anytime soon.

To succeed, such a service needs to be valuable to a broad range of readers while appeasing the publishers. Publishers that want public libraries to pay on the order of $4-5 per checkout of an ebook and even then often hold back their most desirable titles.
On the reader side, the service must offer a big enough spread between the ala carte purchase price and the average rental cost *and* offer a deep enough catalog that readers can be reasonably certain of finding a desired title.

I don't think Scribd can meet either test for the class of reader that would be most interested in a subscription library. Not at $10 a month.

The pricing spread is key: consider Hulu and it's "day after TV" model. For $8 a month you get a back catalog of TV shows and movies not unlike what you can get from Amazon or netflix or by buying dvd sets. And, you get to watch current shows ln *your* starting the day after it airs. A person can get value from Hulu even if they only watch 4 shows a week, 16 episodes per month, resulting in a $0.50 per episode cost, compared to the alternative of buying the episodes ala carte for $2-3 each. The spread is substantial: $8 vs $24-32, even for light TV viewers.

Books are different from TV in that each book requires a substantial commitment of time. While it can be easy to find people around here who easily consume 2-3 or more books a week, 20-30 a month, the vast majority of readers don't read that many a year. For a 20 book a year reader, the Scribd subscription works out to $6 a book. Not much of a saving over buying when best sellers are averaging around $7 these days.

For Scribd to make economic sense, you would need to be something like a book a week reader who doesn't check out library ebooks, read PD classics, or buy much in the way of indie titles. (And who never picks up free or $0.99 ebooks.)
Of course, that reader profile is rare and you're not going to build a business off them.

Worse, the BPHs aren't going to be amused if they see significant numbers of their "priceless cultural artifacts" bringing in half or less of what they (grudgingly) charge public libraries.

I simply don't see a sweet spot in pricing (for a worthy catalog) that could make sense for savvy avid readers without scaring off the BPHs for "devaluing the perceived value" of books even more than the eee-vile outfit that must not be named.

[rem736]

these subscription could be modified with different pricing models depending on how much the subscriber expects to consume, like netflix. so if you only want up to 2 a week, you pay a different price than someone who consumes 20 a month.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by rem736

these subscription could be modified with different pricing models depending on how much the subscriber expects to consume, like netflix. so if you only want up to 2 a week, you pay a different price than someone who consumes 20 a month.

You could.
But the big publishers' revenue expectations don't match readers' assessment of value. Especially for outright rentals.
Going by their library pricing, the BPHs think a one-time rental is worth $5. Avid readers *buy* DRM-free books at $2.99-$4.99. Odds are, if you ask the Randy Penguin guys they'll say the Scribd $10 monthly fee is good for two rentals and most heavy readers would expect no less than 5 and preferably 10 for that fee.

Until the BPHs change their expectations the numbers won't add up.

[rem736]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

You could.
But the big publishers' revenue expectations don't match readers' assessment of value. Especially for outright rentals.
Going by their library pricing, the BPHs think a one-time rental is worth $5. Avid readers *buy* DRM-free books at $2.99-$4.99. Odds are, if you ask the Randy Penguin guys they'll say the Scribd $10 monthly fee is good for two rentals and most heavy readers would expect no less than 5 and preferably 10 for that fee.

Until the BPHs change their expectations the numbers won't add up.

i think this is because rentals are an inconsistent source of income. with a subscription, the publisher has a guaranteed steady and reliable source of income, and therefore may lower the price. lots of factors in all pricing models.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

You could.
But the big publishers' revenue expectations don't match readers' assessment of value.

That can certainly be the case. For some books such as Musashi, which I recently bought I'd gladly pay €15. It's a 1200+ page book, and a classic inside and outside Japan. I got it for €5.99 (Kobo discount coupon), and I think that's tremendous value.

On the other hand, the "normal" price for a Forgotten Realms fantasy novel is also €5.99, and I wouldn't pay that amount for it, except for a rare few such. Many of those books are only 250 pages long (some are even shorter), and it's just "production writing". Nothing special, but fun to read. They're a bit like the "romance novels of fantasy"; there ar a gazillion of them, and apart from a few gems here and there, they're one-off reads.

They're almost written faster than I can read them. €6 is just too much for books like these. I think €3.50-4.50 is much better/fairer price.

I always get them at Amazon.com (€4.85), Feedbooks (€4.45), or if they'll sell them to me, Diesel (many are US only there, for some strange reason, but if I can buy them, they cost $4.39, or €3.23). Amazon.co.uk sells them for £3.05 / €3.65, but I can't get them there. Amazon seems to be very keen to prevent "country-hopping".

I'd never, ever read them through any subscription service, where they'd at least cost around €5 or so, *without* me owning the book.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks

Yes, but the library is also limited by availability. It's a good program and I like it. About half the books I have borrowed would not use Amazon--I had to sideload. Not a problem. The biggest issue is that there are not many books available that I want. I wouldn't mind paying for a lending library that actually had a LOT of books. My library has improved since the start of the lending, but by and large, the majority of books I look up are not available for lending. I am completely onboard that publishers and authors need to make money from the programs, but right now there isn't a happy medium.

Library availability doesn't pose a problem for me. If I can't find a particular Kindle book at any of the libraries I belong to, then I'll pick something else. To me, there's no such thing as a must read book.

I'm more than willing to pay for a subscription video service; but I'll never pay for a subscription ebook, audiobook, magazine, or music service. There's more than enough variety in the available free services of the latter ones for my needs.

[owly]

This type of service would work better in Sweden since people read much more on tablets and phones than on ereaders.

[BearMountainBooks]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Library availability doesn't pose a problem for me. If I can't find a particular Kindle book at any of the libraries I belong to, then I'll pick something else. To me, there's no such thing as a must read book.

I'm more than willing to pay for a subscription video service; but I'll never pay for a subscription ebook, audiobook, magazine, or music service. There's more than enough variety in the available free services of the latter ones for my needs.

I read a lot of genres, but my library doesn't have a large selection of urban fantasy. They do okay with cozy mysteries, but their main fare is lit and thrillers. I have checked out some of the UF they have--they have Briggs and Dresden files, which are as top of the line as it gets. They don't have Amelia Peabody (cozy mystery) or other names that I am interested in. However, I read a lot of indie writers so it isn't as though I lack material. I just don't find it at the library very often.

[mikaelalind]

I have tested the Scribd app, and thought I would write down my thoughts.

The content:
In the genres that I am most interested in ( Fantasy, Urban Fantasy and Romance), they have a pretty good catalogue. It is primarily backlist, but it is a good mix of wellknown authors and less known authors.
The app:
It is stable, but a bit bare bones. For example, the jump between text sizes is too big, and you cannot adjust the screen light within the app.

In the end, Scribd isn't for me, since the app gives me eye strain, but if you read on your phone, tablet or have an rootable e-reader ( this is the first time I regret I didn't buy a Sony PRS T-1), I recommend that you give it a try. It is free the first month.

[SteveK]

I signed up for Scribd the other day. In addition to the monthly plan, they also have an annual plan, which is much cheaper (about $47/year, or about the cost of a non-resident library card). The app could definitely use some additional features as it is rather basic, but it is usable, particularly on a tablet. The selection of books is decent, provided you don't mind reading backlist titles. I've seen many titles not available at my local library, and I've also seen many titles I've previously purchased, so I'm satisfied with the selection, although obviously I hope they are able to offer titles from more publishers.

I figure for about the cost of a non-resident library card, I have access to a decent collection of books with no wait list and no due dates, so I can deal with the limitations of the software, although I do plan to request added features. Overall, I'm satisfied, and have no regrets about signing up for the annual plan without first taking advantage of the trial month they offer.

SteveK

[Darqref]

Originally Posted by SteveK

I figure for about the cost of a non-resident library card, I have access to a decent collection of books with no wait list and no due dates, so I can deal with the limitations of the software, although I do plan to request added features. Overall, I'm satisfied, and have no regrets about signing up for the annual plan without first taking advantage of the trial month they offer.

SteveK

I haven't looked closely, but can you browse the contents of the library without signing up, just to see what they carry?

[Yapyap]

Originally Posted by Darqref

I haven't looked closely, but can you browse the contents of the library without signing up, just to see what they carry?

Yes, you can.

Also, "The Scribd subscription service is available world-wide. /--/ Unfortunately, due to our agreements with authors and publishers, not all books are available to read in all countries. We understand that this can be frustrating and are working hard to make every book available to every user. In the meantime, rest assured that most of our library is available world-wide."

This is .. well, the georestrictions are annoying, but I'm actually positively surprised it's a worldwide thing. Also, a LOT of what I read is HarperCollins, and by browsing around a bit, I'd find a lot that I'd be interested in reading (most of which I've already bought, heh), so if I didn't have a 1000+ already-bought-book TBR list and if I could use this on an eInk device, I'd be very interested in joining - I read enough books in any given month that a $8.99 monthly fee would mean $0.75-$1.00 per book, which would be really cheap for a major publisher.

So ... other than the lack of support for eInk readers, I'm actually really liking this as an idea.

[Synamon]

It is great that this is available outside the US. I may sign up to support the idea and get access to some of the Agatha Christie books that my local library doesn't have.