Waterstones eBook store - what a mess

jaffab · 09-09-2008, 04:03 AM

Hi All,

Has anybody else tried to use the Waterstones eBook store yet? Apart from being REALLY expensive (compared to say buying a book in the USA or another on-line store), its really hard to find anything. I have just dropped Waterstones the following email (copied to Sony)....

Dear Waterstones (and Sony),

My Wife and I have just purchased two Sony PRS-505S ebook readers. We are very happy with these products – excellent technology.

What lets them down is the Waterstones eBook web site, which fails to work, is hard to use, and frankly is not fit for purpose. This lack of thought or preparation by Waterstones badly lets down the Sony product, and reflects badly on Sony.

Take for instance the only way to find an eBook – the search option (http://www.waterstones.com/waterston...ancedSearch.do). You enter a search criteria, select a format of eBook and the returned list are hundreds of paperbacks and hardbacks – no eBooks are listed.

The alternative method is to Browse. So you select the “eBooks” on the browse menu, and from there, you are given 25 subjects. Ok, so that’s not so bad, but if you select the section of say “Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror”, you have to page through the 271 books to see what you want. This needs to be sub-divided, or to sort by title, or search on site, or author, or really anything to make it useful.

I know its really early days for eBooks in the UK, but you have known this was coming, and it only takes a programmer a couple of days to put a decent filter/search system together. At least, get the advanced search system working.

At the moment, I am doing what everybody else (on the forums) is doing, which is to purchase my eBooks from the states (there are many, many ways to do this and overcome the UK restrictions that the web sites try to detect).

garygibsonsf · 09-09-2008, 04:09 AM

Jaffab, I'm in the same boat. The Waterstones site has proved at times exceedingly difficult to browse in many respects.

Without wanting to necessarily defend high prices, I only recently learned that in Europe ebooks count as 'digitised product', which means they have VAT added onto their cost, whereas printed books don't. In that respect, the publishers and website may have no choice when it comes to at least some of their prices.

(I personally regard the addition of VAT to ebook prices as iniquitous in the extreme, sufficiently so I've wondered if I should write to my MP to complain about legislation that acts as a tax on knowledge.)

HarryT · 09-09-2008, 04:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by garygibsonsf

(I personally regard the addition of VAT to ebook prices as iniquitous in the extreme, sufficiently so I've wondered if I should write to my MP to complain about legislation that acts as a tax on knowledge.)

It's an EU thing - not down to our government.

June · 09-09-2008, 06:06 AM

I have to chime in and say that my experience wiht the Waterstones ebookstore was frustrationg. I was hoping to find a few novels, but gave up and bought thee books for my 505 elsewhere.

I'm thinking VAT % isn't dictated by EU though, since the VAT rate varies in different countries. Did you say you have no VAT on books, we do, but it's a lower rate than VAT on food etc. And we're both in EU

HarryT · 09-09-2008, 06:19 AM

I believe, though, that the EU has ruled that eBooks are liable to the "standard" rate of VAT (whatever that may be in each country) because they are classified as "computer software" rather than "books". Countries are allowed to set lower VAT rates for books - eg they are rated at "zero" in the UK.

Flub · 09-09-2008, 06:21 AM

Which is pretty silly when you think about it.

HarryT · 09-09-2008, 06:24 AM

Definitely!

GingerTez · 09-09-2008, 06:43 AM

I wholeheartedly agree with everything above and only want to add one thing...

I wrote a customer review of the PRS-505 on the Waterstones site stating that it the reader is excellent but slating the Waterstones eBook store and the review never made it through to the site... I naively thought that as long as the review wasn't rude or slanderous it would make it through but obviously some extra moderation is being applied

Argel · 09-09-2008, 08:53 AM

British booksellers selling ebook readers based on a format available world-wide is like turkeys voting for Christmas.

One sale and then goodnight customer.

I'm just off to Waterstones to buy a 505 as a present. They'll be lucky to see me again this year, either in a shop or on their website. Car-dealers may be able to get away with regarding Britain as 'Treasure Island' where you can charge absurd prices because of the strip of water but ebook sellers can't.

The only faint hope is that the aggressive HMV (the ultimate owners) sales ethos somehow infects Waterstones. Now that would be interesting.

09-09-2008, 04:03 AM	#1
jaffab Enthusiast Posts: 27 Karma: 70 Join Date: Jul 2008 Device: Sony PR505	Waterstones eBook store - what a mess Hi All, Has anybody else tried to use the Waterstones eBook store yet? Apart from being REALLY expensive (compared to say buying a book in the USA or another on-line store), its really hard to find anything. I have just dropped Waterstones the following email (copied to Sony).... Dear Waterstones (and Sony), My Wife and I have just purchased two Sony PRS-505S ebook readers. We are very happy with these products – excellent technology. What lets them down is the Waterstones eBook web site, which fails to work, is hard to use, and frankly is not fit for purpose. This lack of thought or preparation by Waterstones badly lets down the Sony product, and reflects badly on Sony. Take for instance the only way to find an eBook – the search option (http://www.waterstones.com/waterston...ancedSearch.do). You enter a search criteria, select a format of eBook and the returned list are hundreds of paperbacks and hardbacks – no eBooks are listed. The alternative method is to Browse. So you select the “eBooks” on the browse menu, and from there, you are given 25 subjects. Ok, so that’s not so bad, but if you select the section of say “Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror”, you have to page through the 271 books to see what you want. This needs to be sub-divided, or to sort by title, or search on site, or author, or really anything to make it useful. I know its really early days for eBooks in the UK, but you have known this was coming, and it only takes a programmer a couple of days to put a decent filter/search system together. At least, get the advanced search system working. At the moment, I am doing what everybody else (on the forums) is doing, which is to purchase my eBooks from the states (there are many, many ways to do this and overcome the UK restrictions that the web sites try to detect).

09-09-2008, 06:43 AM	#8
GingerTez Stroppy Ginger Scotsman Posts: 62 Karma: 284 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Altrincham, UK Device: Sony PRS-505	I wholeheartedly agree with everything above and only want to add one thing... I wrote a customer review of the PRS-505 on the Waterstones site stating that it the reader is excellent but slating the Waterstones eBook store and the review never made it through to the site... I naively thought that as long as the review wasn't rude or slanderous it would make it through but obviously some extra moderation is being applied Last edited by GingerTez; 09-09-2008 at 06:44 AM. Reason: clarity

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09-09-2008, 04:09 AM	#2
garygibsonsf Addict Posts: 321 Karma: 432192 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Glasgow, Scotland Device: Amazon Kindle Paperwhite	Jaffab, I'm in the same boat. The Waterstones site has proved at times exceedingly difficult to browse in many respects. Without wanting to necessarily defend high prices, I only recently learned that in Europe ebooks count as 'digitised product', which means they have VAT added onto their cost, whereas printed books don't. In that respect, the publishers and website may have no choice when it comes to at least some of their prices. (I personally regard the addition of VAT to ebook prices as iniquitous in the extreme, sufficiently so I've wondered if I should write to my MP to complain about legislation that acts as a tax on knowledge.)

09-09-2008, 06:06 AM	#4
June Addict Posts: 306 Karma: 4508151 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Scandinavia Device: Kobo Libra, Oasis 1&2 and others	I have to chime in and say that my experience wiht the Waterstones ebookstore was frustrationg. I was hoping to find a few novels, but gave up and bought thee books for my 505 elsewhere. I'm thinking VAT % isn't dictated by EU though, since the VAT rate varies in different countries. Did you say you have no VAT on books, we do, but it's a lower rate than VAT on food etc. And we're both in EU

09-09-2008, 06:19 AM	#5
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	I believe, though, that the EU has ruled that eBooks are liable to the "standard" rate of VAT (whatever that may be in each country) because they are classified as "computer software" rather than "books". Countries are allowed to set lower VAT rates for books - eg they are rated at "zero" in the UK.

09-09-2008, 06:21 AM	#6
Flub Groupie Posts: 164 Karma: 70995 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: United Kingdom Device: iPhone, PRS-505, K2i, iPad 64GB+3G, K3, Nexus S	Which is pretty silly when you think about it.

09-09-2008, 06:24 AM	#7
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Definitely!

09-09-2008, 08:53 AM	#9
Argel Opinionated [but right] Posts: 276 Karma: 1412 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: UK Device: Cybook Gen3, PRS 505, Kindle International, HTC Desire	British booksellers selling ebook readers based on a format available world-wide is like turkeys voting for Christmas. One sale and then goodnight customer. I'm just off to Waterstones to buy a 505 as a present. They'll be lucky to see me again this year, either in a shop or on their website. Car-dealers may be able to get away with regarding Britain as 'Treasure Island' where you can charge absurd prices because of the strip of water but ebook sellers can't. The only faint hope is that the aggressive HMV (the ultimate owners) sales ethos somehow infects Waterstones. Now that would be interesting.