Storm brewing: Library book pricing

[fjtorres]

From the Huffington Post, a reminder that the fallout of the Price Fix Conspiracy is hardly over:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/art-br...7&rid=26912588

If anything, it is beginning:

While the e-book world takes a minute to digest the court ruling finding Apple conspired with book publishers to jack up the price of e-books to consumers, it's worth noting that there is another e-book pricing battle going on.

Consumers are the ultimate victims here, also, but those most directly affected are public libraries. Some book publishers don't lease e-books to libraries at all, depriving library customers of versions of popular best-sellers. Others set the lease rates exorbitantly high, squeezing the already squeezed library budget.

Yes, having been found to be conspiring miscreants, the BPHs are now fair game for the bigger breed of predatory miscreant: politicians...

The American Library Association (ALA), and particularly former President Maureen Sullivan, have raised the issue loudly and persistently, but the publishers haven't been terribly responsive. Now, state and local governments are just starting to become involved on behalf of their libraries and the library patrons.

In Connecticut, Gov. Dan Malloy (D) on June 6 signed a bill requiring the state attorney general and the state librarian to conduct a study on the availability of e-books to public library customers. The study will have a broad mandate, taking in such topics as surveying current practices used by publishers and distributors (companies like Overdrive or Baker & Taylor, which supply the software to make the e-books available to libraries), to determine if there are any problems with those practices and if so, what to do about them.

The requirement of a study was the last compromise in the legislative process, which started out with a bill by State Rep. Brian Sear (D) "to require publishers of electronic books to offer such books for sale to public and academic libraries at the same rates as offered to the general public." That bill would mean the publishers couldn't charge the public $12.99 for an e-book and charge libraries $85 for the same e-book, which is the practice now.

States should study the pricing of e-books, and pass on to Congress and Federal agencies their findings. Localities should speak up for their library users. And Congress should ask book publishers when they will recognize the harm being done to library budgets and to library users through discriminatory pricing.

More detail at the source.

The BPHs should start beefing up their lobbying deartment. Now, in addition to their Amazon FUD campaign, they are going to have to run 51 lobbying efforts to stop library book pricing from being regulated.

Of course, the same states looking at their library practices are also plaintiffs in the still-pending class action Price Fixing suits. They are not likely to be easily swayed with the usual sweet-talk and small brown paper bags...

[John F]

Go Connecticut!*



*Full disclosure: I'm from Connecticut.

[silverraven]

Originally Posted by John F

Go Connecticut!*



*Full disclosure: I'm from Connecticut.

Go Connecticut!!
I'm not from Connecticut, but if one state wins then it should filter down to all states!
Better libraries help us all!
S

[FizzyWater]

Don't libraries pay more for print books (and other media, like books on CD, etc.) than the average consumer as well?

I can't imagine that the BPHs wouldn't find a way around this - "okay, you can pay the same, but you can only lend the eBook 6 times before you have to repurchase it!"

My concerns have been more along the idea that BPHs shouldn't be able to disallow book/ebook lending in libraries. Today, if libraries want all of the Big 6, they have to subscribe to two services (Overdrive and 3M). I don't think we should have a protected monopoly for ebooks - but I also think it's excessive to ask libraries to pay the administrative fees for two (or more) services just to get access to all publishers.

[jehane]

bill by State Rep. Brian Sear (D) "to require publishers of electronic books to offer such books for sale to public and academic libraries at the same rates as offered to the general public." That bill would mean the publishers couldn't charge the public $12.99 for an e-book and charge libraries $85 for the same e-book, which is the practice now.

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

Don't libraries pay more for print books (and other media, like books on CD, etc.) than the average consumer as well?

That's what I thought. $85 is 6.5 times $13 - is the current pricing model for print books comparable?

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

I can't imagine that the BPHs wouldn't find a way around this - "okay, you can pay the same, but you can only lend the eBook 6 times before you have to repurchase it!"

I don't have a problem with this. If the prices are lower, but lending is restricted, that can work in the library's favour. eg buy several copies of the current bestsellers now, then in 6-12 months when the initial rush has been satisfied and it's time to renew the lease, only renew for a few copies. For less popular titles, if no one has borrowed it in 12 months, don't renew the lease. That keeps inventory fresh and readers happy.

[Fbone]

Apple and Amazon also oppose the Library legislation.

The publisher team was formidable -- the biggest print publishers, plus Apple and Amazon. Even with that lineup opposing it, the bill gained momentum and cosponsors.

[speakingtohe]

Interesting article but it could cite more facts, ie how much is the average cost per circulation for print and ebooks.


Ebooks are not susceptible to theft or damage in the same way that paper books are and do not need to be stored in expensive property, often rental, with scanners and magnetic anti-theft devices.

Staff costs to lend an ebook are minimal, no one has to reshelve them, and I would think that entering them into the online catalogue is trivial compared to preparing a paper book

The cost of circulation of an ebook is AFAIK generally 1/27th of the price paid with a few cents added on for computer administration costs. Online library services were in existence before ebooks were added so I assume the same cost applies to both paper and ebooks.

If the book costs $27 than the cost per circulation is about $1. A paper book is often said to cost 50 cents per circulation but this is based solely on the cost of the book without that additional costs of storing, replacing stolen books, preparing books and administering paper books, not to mention shipping costs which are generally nil for ebooks.

HAPLRS indexes pre 2000 give the average cost per circulation as being in excess of $1, typically in the $2-$3 range with some libraries actually having an average cost of circulation for paper books in excess of $10.

Additional savings of both time and money are seen by the library patron who no longer has to travel to the library.

While I do not say that books could not be cheaper and I think all books should be available as library books, I do not think it is a problem commensurate with world poverty or the homeless or lack of medical care.

Despite protests and articles like this one, most libraries seem to be jumping on the ebook bandwagon with abandon. Some libraries have jumped on the bandwagon to such an extent that they bought multiple copies, in one case 90, of JK Rowling's latest within hours of the author being revealed. VPL had 1 copy the first day and 8 the day after and today they have 10. While I would maybe like to see more balanced spending, it seems obvious to me that ebook pricing is not completely out of line in most cases or the libraries could not and would not be able to do this.


Helen

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Despite protests and articles like this one, most libraries seem to be jumping on the ebook bandwagon with abandon.

Libraries know who their customers are.
And what thosse customers want.
With their budets under constant pressure, they know they need to please.

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Libraries know who their customers are.
And what thosse customers want.
With their budets under constant pressure, they know they need to please.

Do they need to please or do they want to please? Is this general library policy or individual?

I am all in favour of libraries carrying lots and lots popular fiction, and in my experience this was not always the case.

many libraries today lease best selling paper books at a fairly steep price to please their patrons. Cheaper than buying, but not much. I was told by one head librarian that the big advantage was that they did not have to deal with getting rid of or storing the books when their popularity waned. They could in most cases destroy them.

I question the wisdom of this. Buying 90 copies of a prospective bestseller because there are 500 patrons on the waiting list will please at least 90 and perhaps 200.The rest will still be annoyed if they were going to be annoyed to start out with, and if the list reaches 2000 do they then buy several hundred more? I have waited months for a paper book on hold and did not boycott the library, write my city councillor or even complain to my 87 year old mother. I've waited weeks to receive a book I ordered from a bookstore.

If libraries are actually seen as trying to supply books on demand at no perceived price to their patrons, no wonder publishing paranoia.

I would like everybody to have everything they could possibly desire before they even know they desire it, but as that is unlikely, I would like to see library policy geared to building a varied collection of works appealing to a wide variety of tastes. Not geared to getting the latest $9.99 best seller into the hands of the most people possible before they go onto another fad or desire.

Helen

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Do they need to please or do they want to please? Is this general library policy or individual?

Helen

Depends on the part of the country but library funding has been under pressure for years, with actual cuts in many areas. That would seem to be a need to please, no?
Many library systems for years have operated as much more than book repositories; hosting adult education, cultural events, and community events. To a large extent they are complements to the formal educational system. Recreational services (CDs, DVDs, popular fiction) get a lot of attention because of their visibility but in most library systems the bulk of the budget goes to the services side which is why the price of books is now an issue; faced with a choice between buying more books for circulation and hosting job search seminars, most opt for the latter.
Times change and libraries have been changing with their communities.

http://www.masslibsystem.org/continuing-education/
http://www.detroit.lib.mi.us/special...ent-assistance
http://www.cuyahogalibrary.org/Servi...ing-Rooms.aspx

[Andrew H.]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

I question the wisdom of this. Buying 90 copies of a prospective bestseller because there are 500 patrons on the waiting list will please at least 90 and perhaps 200.The rest will still be annoyed if they were going to be annoyed to start out with, and if the list reaches 2000 do they then buy several hundred more?
[snip]
Helen

My library will order 300+ copies of a book expected to be a bestseller; here's link to 280 HB copies of Dan Brown's latest: http://sherloc.imcpl.org/?itemid=|li.../dynix|1422435

In addition to the PB list, there are 50 e-books available.

I don't think ordering that many books annoys anyone who wants the book; even if you are the 2000th person wanting the book, the wait will be much shorter than it would be if there were only 50 copies available.

And I think that's what libraries should do; you certain don't want a library that only has books no one wants to read...even though you also don't want a library that only has books everyone wants to read.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

Don't libraries pay more for print books (and other media, like books on CD, etc.) than the average consumer as well?

Since the same retail channels, for physical products. are open to all, not necessarily.

. . . a bill by State Rep. Brian Sear (D) "to require publishers of electronic books to offer such books for sale to public and academic libraries at the same rates as offered to the general public."

Can they do that? And would it apply to mail order and internet booksellers, or just to brick and mortar stores?

If they do have the authority, I would like for price haggling to be outlawed on all products. Same price for all comers. I know this won't happen, because, I suspect, the great majority of new car buyers think they are above-average price negotiators.

[Hampshire Nanny]

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

Don't libraries pay more for print books (and other media, like books on CD, etc.) than the average consumer as well?

Indeed. In fact, some Audio CDs that I have purchased have a warning on each disk "Not for sale to libraries". I used to donate audio books to the library after I listened to them and they'd go into circulation. But the ones with this warning cannot be circulated and the library offers them for sale at the annual fund-raiser.

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

many libraries today lease best selling paper books at a fairly steep price to please their patrons. Cheaper than buying, but not much. I was told by one head librarian that the big advantage was that they did not have to deal with getting rid of or storing the books when their popularity waned. They could in most cases destroy them.

My small, rural library leases best-sellers for 12 months. At the end of the lease, they can be purchased or returned to the lender who then sells them on the 2nd-hand market.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg

Can they do that? And would it apply to mail order and interynet booksellers, or just to brick and mortar stores?

They can.
They are the government.

And it's *their* money being spent on the common good. It would not even be a particularly extreme use of eminent domain. Local governments have "bought" property from people who don't want to sell and given it to others to use for commercial purposes. Don't want to get political, so lets just say that a certain political wing doesn't much believe in property rights and does believe in arbitrarily taking from some to give to others to ensure electoral loyalty.

With that as a background, asserting price controls and forcing a sale on their terms is well within precedent.

Most people like being on the receiving end of the government's largesse...
...until it is *their* largesse being given away.

Considering the leanings of the publishing industry rank and file this would be a fitting reminder of life in the real world.

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Interesting article but it could cite more facts, ie how much is the average cost per circulation for print and ebooks.

To that I would ask: how much is the average cost per sale for print and ebooks?

Follow up question: why should booksellers reap the benefits that you described, yet libraries be denied them?