Publisher tries to justify ebook price increase - Page 4

JeffElkins · 09-20-2008, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaleDe

Ah, but that was when .50 was actually almost worth .50. A stamp had just risen to about 7 cents as I recall but I remember when it was on 3 cents for first class. You can't equate 1968 prices to today. Do you still make the wages you did in 1968 and every year since that time?

Dale

Dale, I did take inflation into account.

Tattncat · 09-21-2008, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

From the Amazon forums:

Says who?

Tattncat · 09-21-2008, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeffElkins

A fifty cent paperback in my misspent youth would cost me roughly $3.50 today. I figure the fair price for an ebook is about a buck US.

So, to get the entire Nero Wolfe canon legally should cost me under a hundred bucks. Which I would gladly pay for good formatting, covers, etc. Without DRM. In a portable format. Until the publishers get a clue I choose the darknet.

BTW, I still own Nero Wolfe paperbacks that I purchased as a teen. I'm not going to pay eleven bucks for something that cost me .50 cents in 1968.

I will if I can get it in an eBook. I have run out of room for my PBacks & Hardbounds.

daffy4u · 09-21-2008, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tattncat

Says who?

Not sure what you're asking.

adamjury · 09-22-2008, 06:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mazzeltjes

Is any book that good ?

Any book? Hell yes. Any novel? Fewer, but still, yes. Any ebook? Maybe not now ... but when the technology gets better, the wider variety of ebooks being available will certainly mean that titles worth >$20 will become available. I buy print books that cost $40+ on a regular basis, and I'd buy them as ebooks if the hardware was up to displaying them [in terms of color and screen size.]

However, I think that it's clear that some books, to some people, are worth far more to those same books are to other people. Books don't have an objective value, which is why pricing books -- especially in the various ebook and other electronic formats -- is so difficult.

jazz_jeff · 09-22-2008, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaggy

In other words... "we want to find out how much we can rip you off and have you still come back for more".

That sounds just about right!

Lemurion · 09-22-2008, 10:00 AM

A book is worth what you're willing to pay for it.

I buy $75.00 oversized hardcover comic books without batting an eye. However an eBook I just want to read once isn't worth more than $10 to me, and I'd rather pay $6-7 for it. The way I see it, the publishers are right to say they need to figure out the most appropriate pricing for eBooks. Unfortunately, many are going in the wrong direction. EBooks are disposable reading just like paperbacks and should be priced accordingly.

HarperCollins tried something, it didn't work. Hopefully next time they may realize the real money is below the $9.99 price point and stay there.

pilotbob · 09-22-2008, 12:49 PM

I think the "worth" of a book depends on the format of the media and how long you will have it.

A nice hard cover is certainly worth more than the same book as a MMP.

For an ebook, one with DRM is worth less because you are basically renting it. If you look at movies you can rent the DVD for $3 or you can buy it for $12. So, I would be willing to pay a bit more for DRM free ebooks than those with DRM. Although these days DRM is pretty easy to remove.

The bottom line, as someone said is that books are worth what someone will pay for it. If people will pay $12 for an ebook then that will be the price. What I expect will happen is that the price will be based on how close it is to the release date. Perhaps for the first month the book's price is $19.99. Then after that it goes down to $12.00 for about 3 months, then it goes down to $9.99 for maybe a year. After that it goes down more. So, back catalog books should cost maybe $3 or so.

BOb

mazzeltjes · 09-24-2008, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

I think the "worth" of a book depends on the format of the media and how long you will have it.

A nice hard cover is certainly worth more than the same book as a MMP.

For an ebook, one with DRM is worth less because you are basically renting it. If you look at movies you can rent the DVD for $3 or you can buy it for $12. So, I would be willing to pay a bit more for DRM free ebooks than those with DRM. Although these days DRM is pretty easy to remove.

The bottom line, as someone said is that books are worth what someone will pay for it. If people will pay $12 for an ebook then that will be the price. What I expect will happen is that the price will be based on how close it is to the release date. Perhaps for the first month the book's price is $19.99. Then after that it goes down to $12.00 for about 3 months, then it goes down to $9.99 for maybe a year. After that it goes down more. So, back catalog books should cost maybe $3 or so.

BOb

How about

Hardcover and ebook get published at the same time
The price of the hardcover-- whatever.
Price of the ebook : the price of the paperback to be published later.
Hardcovers will always sell to collectors, (

)
so there is a good chance that the publishers won't lose sales there.
Owners of reading devices will buy the ebook now rather than
next year and may be willing to pay the paperback price for the ebook so they don't have to wait for the ebook and paperback release. Basically the same advantage that the hardback buyer has. Giving an earlier return on investment for the pub. and the writer as well. DRM? Like pilotbob says : "these days DRM is pretty easy to remove."

pagansoul · 09-25-2008, 10:48 AM

The way I see it, I have ebooks so when I die, my family won't have to wade through piles of books to clean out my home.

I already have piles of DVDs, comics, books I will never get rid of and cloths. I look at my home and say to myself, "do you need all this stuff?" I will not always have a Kindle but I will always have a computer of some kind. So far I have not deleted any of the ebooks that I purchased off Fictionwise or Amazon but I don't see them having a life after I'm gone. Technology is moving quite fast these days. The current business models are having a very hard time of it. They will always try to get the most for what they provide, it's always been that way and the market will either take it or crush them. We can always say we remember when a paperback was under a buck but a slice of pizza was 10 cents and I could go to the movies for 50 cents (double feature). A book is worth exactly what you are willing to pay for it. Only people with a lot of surplus income will pay $25 for a novel in ebook. Most people I know will just go to the library or wait for the reseller market or cheap paperback edition.

I think the old-type publishing houses will begin to go out of business if that hasn't already begun to happen.

meredithwh · 10-29-2010, 04:41 AM

There is a good deal of work involved in producing e-books -- preparing them in all the differetn formats, after the usual editing etc etc -- but without the warehousing and distribution costs, etc of tree books, there is no real excuse for high prices on e-books. Other than trying to rip off the consumer.

L.J. Sellers · 10-29-2010, 11:51 AM

Wouldn't you hate to have that job? I mean being the person who has to explain to readers day after day why the company you work for is charging $15 or $20 for a digital file. That would be hard to take. I wonder if employees are leaving the big 5 out of frustration...or a sense of doom.
L.J.

basschick · 10-30-2010, 04:02 AM

reading this thread has given me the urge to head on over to baen and buy another of their reasonably priced ebooks that are also available in multiple formats. and then maybe head on over to harper collins and let them know why i bought today's ebook from baen.

mldavis2 · 10-30-2010, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meredithwh

There is a good deal of work involved in producing e-books -- preparing them in all the differetn formats, after the usual editing etc etc -- but without the warehousing and distribution costs, etc of tree books, there is no real excuse for high prices on e-books. Other than trying to rip off the consumer.

I disagree. Except for scanning and converting older printed books, all books made today are written with word processors and already exist in digital format which is how publishers evaluate and edit them for either eBook or pBook distribution. Virtually all formatting, even with embedded images, is done automatically, so there is no additional work or time needed by publishers to offer an eBook. Even your eBook reader formats the text on the fly to fit its screen.

Publishers are losing profit on pBooks (mostly paperbacks) as eBook sales increase and pBook sales drop accordingly. There is more profit in an eBook at the same price as a pBook because they aren't providing paper, printing, binding, transportation and shelf space, so an eBook should not cost as much as a pBook. Actually there would be more format editing for a pBook than an eBook because of the fixed page dimensions. I will NOT pay a pBook price for an eBook.

JLeighs · 10-30-2010, 12:54 PM

I never purchased new release books (especially hardcover) because I thought the prices were outrageous. Nor did it make any sense for me financially considering how fast I go through books. My favorite haunts for books were Half Price Books and thrift stores, and I was willing to pay up to $10 for something I really wanted (say a good cookbook --cooking is a hobby of mine). Now that I've gone to ebooks, I find myself balking at spending more than $5. Maybe I'm just a cheapskate.

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09-22-2008, 10:00 AM	#52
Lemurion eReader Posts: 2,750 Karma: 4968470 Join Date: Aug 2007 Device: Note 5; PW3; Nook HD+; ChuWi Hi12; iPad	A book is worth what you're willing to pay for it. I buy $75.00 oversized hardcover comic books without batting an eye. However an eBook I just want to read once isn't worth more than $10 to me, and I'd rather pay $6-7 for it. The way I see it, the publishers are right to say they need to figure out the most appropriate pricing for eBooks. Unfortunately, many are going in the wrong direction. EBooks are disposable reading just like paperbacks and should be priced accordingly. HarperCollins tried something, it didn't work. Hopefully next time they may realize the real money is below the $9.99 price point and stay there.

09-22-2008, 12:49 PM	#53
pilotbob Grand Sorcerer Posts: 19,832 Karma: 11844413 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Tampa, FL USA Device: Kindle Touch	I think the "worth" of a book depends on the format of the media and how long you will have it. A nice hard cover is certainly worth more than the same book as a MMP. For an ebook, one with DRM is worth less because you are basically renting it. If you look at movies you can rent the DVD for $3 or you can buy it for $12. So, I would be willing to pay a bit more for DRM free ebooks than those with DRM. Although these days DRM is pretty easy to remove. The bottom line, as someone said is that books are worth what someone will pay for it. If people will pay $12 for an ebook then that will be the price. What I expect will happen is that the price will be based on how close it is to the release date. Perhaps for the first month the book's price is $19.99. Then after that it goes down to $12.00 for about 3 months, then it goes down to $9.99 for maybe a year. After that it goes down more. So, back catalog books should cost maybe $3 or so. BOb

09-25-2008, 10:48 AM	#55
pagansoul Fanatic Posts: 509 Karma: 1098204 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Earth Device: iPhone5, iPad Gen3, Kobo, Kindle Fire, Kobo Vox. Samsung Galaxy Tab 7	The way I see it, I have ebooks so when I die, my family won't have to wade through piles of books to clean out my home. I already have piles of DVDs, comics, books I will never get rid of and cloths. I look at my home and say to myself, "do you need all this stuff?" I will not always have a Kindle but I will always have a computer of some kind. So far I have not deleted any of the ebooks that I purchased off Fictionwise or Amazon but I don't see them having a life after I'm gone. Technology is moving quite fast these days. The current business models are having a very hard time of it. They will always try to get the most for what they provide, it's always been that way and the market will either take it or crush them. We can always say we remember when a paperback was under a buck but a slice of pizza was 10 cents and I could go to the movies for 50 cents (double feature). A book is worth exactly what you are willing to pay for it. Only people with a lot of surplus income will pay $25 for a novel in ebook. Most people I know will just go to the library or wait for the reseller market or cheap paperback edition. I think the old-type publishing houses will begin to go out of business if that hasn't already begun to happen.

10-29-2010, 04:41 AM	#56
meredithwh Junior Member Posts: 8 Karma: 10000 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: none	There is a good deal of work involved in producing e-books -- preparing them in all the differetn formats, after the usual editing etc etc -- but without the warehousing and distribution costs, etc of tree books, there is no real excuse for high prices on e-books. Other than trying to rip off the consumer.

10-29-2010, 11:51 AM	#57
L.J. Sellers Novelist Posts: 287 Karma: 387979 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Eugene, Oregon Device: Kindle	Wouldn't you hate to have that job? I mean being the person who has to explain to readers day after day why the company you work for is charging $15 or $20 for a digital file. That would be hard to take. I wonder if employees are leaving the big 5 out of frustration...or a sense of doom. L.J.

10-30-2010, 04:02 AM	#58
basschick Wizard Posts: 1,096 Karma: 4695691 Join Date: May 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite	reading this thread has given me the urge to head on over to baen and buy another of their reasonably priced ebooks that are also available in multiple formats. and then maybe head on over to harper collins and let them know why i bought today's ebook from baen.

10-30-2010, 12:54 PM	#60
JLeighs Addict Posts: 219 Karma: 1208646 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Wisconsin Device: K3, PW	I never purchased new release books (especially hardcover) because I thought the prices were outrageous. Nor did it make any sense for me financially considering how fast I go through books. My favorite haunts for books were Half Price Books and thrift stores, and I was willing to pay up to $10 for something I really wanted (say a good cookbook --cooking is a hobby of mine). Now that I've gone to ebooks, I find myself balking at spending more than $5. Maybe I'm just a cheapskate.

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