09-27-2011, 05:04 PM | #1 |
Junior Member
Posts: 3
Karma: 100000
Join Date: May 2011
Device: Samsung E65
|
Paper book vs ebook price
Hello,
Was recently looking for a book via inkmesh.com, found it was on sale at Amazon and Kobo (plus others), went to Amazon and discovered the Kindle version was at $15, the new paper book at $18, and used paper books started at $2. I feel the delta between Kindle and new paper is just too small, they must save a fortune in printing, shipping, storing etc so the ebook should be cheaper, say around $10. Is this common? What are people's thoughts on the subject? |
09-27-2011, 05:17 PM | #2 | |
Member Retired
Posts: 1,999
Karma: 11348924
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Limbo
Device: none
|
Use the darknet until they stop trying to rip you off and make decent pricing. Use it or be used by them, your choice.
Quote:
|
|
09-27-2011, 05:48 PM | #3 |
Guru
Posts: 973
Karma: 2458402
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: St. Louis
Device: Kindle Keyboard, Nook HD+
|
I know. Since Agency pricing started, I've found myself buying far more physical books than e-books. My Kindle is now used for oldies/freebies.
|
09-27-2011, 06:39 PM | #4 | |
Wizard
Posts: 1,358
Karma: 5766642
Join Date: Aug 2010
Device: Nook
|
Quote:
Most of what a publisher should be doing has little to do with the final format. They should be editing - not copyediting, which is to say, spell checking, but actual editing, helping the writer put together a coherent story, and tell it in a compelling way, and marketing, both of which require a lot of time and expertise. (Mind you, I agree that most publishers do a crappy job at most of this these days, but they do an equally crappy job on the paper versions, so this isn't an ebook/pbook issue.) Charlie Stross (who is an award winning SF author) estimated that his publisher put about as many-hours in to publishing his book as he did writing it - not counting printing costs. The Agency pricing model is an attempt to retain a now outdated business model, where hard covers cost quite a bit more to make, and justify a significatly higher retail price, in an industry where profits are a percentage. In other words, if you make a 5% profit on any type of book, you make more profit on a more expensive book, and hard covers are more expensive. If ebooks are priced like paperbacks from Day One, it really, really seriously impacts the publishers profits (and not just from the lower retail price - it also reduces the number of hard cover sales by competing with themselves). There is a legitimate concern there, even if Agency pricing is a very stupid solution. I suspect, in the long run, when paper books are a specialty market, and nearly all books are about as ebooks, the pricing will be fairly static, but will be around, or just above, what paperbacks cost today. That, or the industry will collapse, as an industry, and everyone will self publish through places like Amazon, and quality will get even worse than it is today. |
|
09-28-2011, 08:56 AM | #5 | |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 19,226
Karma: 67780237
Join Date: Jul 2011
Device: none
|
So far this year I've bought 9 p-books and 12 e-books. It's starting to shift more to paper again as the deals are better on paper for some titles.
Quote:
I do realize that books are relatively cheap to produce, but not so much to store and ship. I think all we are seeing is basic supply and demand. Demand for e-books has gone way up so the sellers are trying to reap more profits from them, trying to find that price level where they can maximize returns. |
|
09-28-2011, 09:18 AM | #6 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 7,345
Karma: 52398889
Join Date: Oct 2010
Device: Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite, AGPTek Bluetooth Clip
|
I am beginning to think that when a new book is published simultaneously in hardcover and e-book format, the e-book should be priced higher than it is now--approximately equal to the discounted hardcover price, which is probably around $15 most of the time.
But then when the mass-market paperback comes out, the e-book price should drop to maybe a dollar below the paperback price. As it is now, at least for the books I buy, I am getting a great bargain on new books, and overpaying for older books. |
09-28-2011, 10:47 AM | #7 |
Lord of Frogtown
Posts: 149
Karma: 1154748
Join Date: May 2011
Location: St. Paul MN
Device: Kindle
|
Lord knows I'm no accountant, but I wonder about this. There's the cost of printing and shipping, warehousing, shipping to distributors who then ship to stores, receiving returns of unsold books, pulping, all the related accounting and other steps I'm probably not imagining. Seems like more than $2.50 or whatever per unit.
|
09-28-2011, 11:42 AM | #8 |
Wizard
Posts: 4,293
Karma: 529619
Join Date: May 2007
Device: iRex iLiad, DR800SG
|
|
09-28-2011, 11:48 AM | #9 |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
If you feel you're being "blatantly ripped off", the logical course of action would be not to buy the product concerned. There are many people, though, who don't share your viewpoint.
|
09-28-2011, 12:22 PM | #10 |
Wizard
Posts: 4,293
Karma: 529619
Join Date: May 2007
Device: iRex iLiad, DR800SG
|
|
09-28-2011, 12:23 PM | #11 | |
Guru
Posts: 902
Karma: 1660722
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Maryland
Device: PRS-650, PRS-600, PRS-350
|
Quote:
Shipping is bulk and even mail has a reduced price book rate. For paperbacks, returns are the covers only, not the entire book. Which tells you how much the actual book is worth to the publisher. |
|
09-28-2011, 12:30 PM | #12 |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
You've lost me there. What does piracy have to do with it?
Personally, I'm fine with eBook prices. I typically buy 2-3 eBooks a week; they are generally around the £5 price mark. A typical paperback costs £8 in the UK, so even with the fact that the £5 eBook includes 20% VAT, and the paperback doesn't, I'm still only paying around 60% of the paperback price. |
09-28-2011, 12:34 PM | #13 |
Groupie
Posts: 162
Karma: 1719250
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Sacramento
Device: Kindle
|
As the price of e-books goes up, I've been trying more independent authors at the $1-2 price point. And there's a lot of older content that is discounted much more than the current bestsellers. There are few authors that I'll pay $15+ for.
|
09-28-2011, 12:35 PM | #14 |
Banned
Posts: 1,687
Karma: 4368191
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Oregon
Device: Kindle3
|
Pricing is irrelevant.
Perhaps the question should be why is the ebook available from different servers for different prices? It is the same file, just stored in different locations. Amazon and others are service providers for sure, and perhaps you feel a premium should be paid for decent service and you might be right. But what about those who know what they want and simply want the book? |
09-28-2011, 03:46 PM | #15 |
Guru
Posts: 902
Karma: 1660722
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Maryland
Device: PRS-650, PRS-600, PRS-350
|
Because, as will all things (except Agency priced books) the seller sets the price based on what they need to make over their cost.
And yes, part of that ist eh amount of infrastructure they have to support. |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Paper book with free ebook in Italy | Format C: | News | 4 | 11-30-2010 07:44 PM |
If I bought paper book do I still have to pay for eBook? | pashlit | Amazon Kindle | 12 | 09-26-2010 06:00 PM |
Paper Book price comparison - NO EBOOKS! | bella7 | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 2 | 10-28-2009 12:06 PM |
eBook vs paper book analogy | Dave W | News | 28 | 10-07-2009 03:12 PM |