Are DRM infections dying out?

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

Baen is the poster child for anti-DRM success.




It'll be a while, but they'll drop DRM--because they hate Amazon. As long as their books are DRM'd, their Amazon customers aren't going to leave for other stores. (I find this hilarious. The publishers don't like Amazon's success, but they don't want to remove their content from the store. It's like they think Amazon should run itself for *their* benefit, rather than for Amazon's profit.)

Sorry I left out Baen. Can't seem to figure if they are successful or not.

And people hating Amazon enough to forgo profit may possibly be a minority group.

I imagine most of us would like it if everyone ran things for our benefit. Today Amazon and all the book sellers, tomorrow the world.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

It'll be a while, but they'll drop DRM--because they hate Amazon.

This. It'll be just like when the music publishers dropped DRM because they hated Apple. (They gave Amazon permission to sell DRM-free tracks several months before Apple were allowed to do the same.)

What I can't understand is how the book publishers are willing to spend $0.22+ per ebook on Adobe's DRM.

Dropping DRM and increasing profit per ebook by $0.22 should be a no-brainer.

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

This. It'll be just like when the music publishers dropped DRM because they hated Apple. (They gave Amazon permission to sell DRM-free tracks several months before Apple were allowed to do the same.)

What I can't understand is how the book publishers are willing to spend $0.22+ per ebook on Adobe's DRM.

Dropping DRM and increasing profit per ebook by $0.22 should be a no-brainer.

Perhaps they think right or wrong that selling x books at 9.99 is marginally better than selling less books at 9.77. Go figure.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Perhaps they think right or wrong that selling x books at 9.99 is marginally better than selling less books at 9.77. Go figure.

Got any evidence that removing the DRM will reduce sales?

And I wasn't suggesting selling a $9.99 ebook at $9.77. I was suggesting making $7.21 from a $9.99 ebook instead of $6.99.

[Ken Maltby]

To clarify for "AnemicOak" (an ill oak in Minnesota?) My post expressed my impression of
the situation based on what appears to be the results in the marketplace. I have no
leaked e-mails, interdepartmental memos, or whistle blower testimony, and the interworkings of such corporations are seldom made public. I too would love to have
more factual information on this subject, from any who have been involved in the process.

That a company would go to the trouble to develop/adapt a DRM system that restricted
the use of the ebooks they sell to only those devices and applications that they sell/control, is a considerable expense and commitment on their part. Such actions are
not often taken without some potential profit in mind.

I have no proof that "they" have made it a part of their negotiations with authors and
publishers, and it could be that no overt actions are part of the process. It would be
odd though if they went to the trouble to create their own proprietary DRM and
neglected to promote it. That they allow no other DRM on the books they sell might
indicate something, as well.

Luck;
Ken

[murraypaul]

Book retailers provide DRM because the major publishers require it.
No DRM, no sales of those publishers' eBooks.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Book retailers provide DRM because the major publishers require it.
No DRM, no sales of those publishers' eBooks.

This seems false to me since if the publisher told the book retailer that they could choose to have DRM or not at least Amazon would choose to have DRM.

[murraypaul]

Originally Posted by tompe

This seems false to me since if the publisher told the book retailer that they could choose to have DRM or not at least Amazon would choose to have DRM.

Even assuming that Amazon would make that choice, how does it make what I said false?
The major publishers do require DRM. Retailers must provide it to sell those eBooks.

[taustin]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

.What I can't understand is how the book publishers are willing to spend $0.22+ per ebook on Adobe's DRM.

Dropping DRM and increasing profit per ebook by $0.22 should be a no-brainer.

Obviously they believe it will increase their profits by more than $0.22. If not using DRM costs them sales, it's a simple formula to figure out the break even point.

That their belief is wrong is irrelevant. It would be foolish of them to act against their beliefs, and even more foolish of us to expect them to.

[taustin]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Got any evidence that removing the DRM will reduce sales?

Got any evidence that it won't?

[avantman42]

Originally Posted by tompe

This seems false to me since if the publisher told the book retailer that they could choose to have DRM or not at least Amazon would choose to have DRM.

Amazon don't make that choice with indie books published via KDP. The author/publisher gets to choose whether to use DRM or not. Neither option is selected by default, so the author/publisher has to choose.

Of course, they may make a different choice with a big publisher, but the only evidence I'm aware of (ie how they act with KDP-published books) suggests that Amazon don't really care whether DRM is used or not.

[avantman42]

Originally Posted by taustin

Got any evidence that it won't?

Yes. Following quote is taken from this post

This year we went DRM-free at TOR. It is still too early to tell the outcome, but initial results suggest there was no increase in piracy.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by avantman42

but the only evidence I'm aware of (ie how they act with KDP-published books) suggests that Amazon don't really care whether DRM is used or not.

IIRC aren't all Amazon published books (ie put out by Amazon Publishing) DRM'd? That would seem to show they care when it comes to what they themselves are putting out.

[avantman42]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

IIRC aren't all Amazon published books (ie put out by Amazon Publishing) DRM'd? That would seem to show they care when it comes to what they themselves are putting out.

I'd forgotten they have their own publishing arm I honestly don't know if they're DRM'd or not. You're right, though, that would probably be a better indicator of whether or not Amazon would choose to use DRM if the publisher left the choice to them.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by taustin

Got any evidence that it won't?

Yes. Tor.