Topic: Kindle books dishonesty?

[Miisanthrope]

Latest book I looked up, the CD audiobook was cheaper than the Kindle version. Wow.

[arthwollipot]

I've never encountered a paper book in a bookstore for $10. Well, maybe twenty years ago or so, but an average science fiction novel costs about $30.

Actually, it's been a while since I've checked, so don't take that as gospel...

[Johnny Slick]

So in the end I don't think Amazon should have to warn their customers that the books can be found free.  Buyer beware.

Eh? Even if the Kindle version does have some advantages, why in the world should they not have to note that the books can be acquired for free elsewhere? Is lie by omission no longer frowned upon?

Another reason not to get a Kindle.

Yeah, come on! It's just like when I go to Barnes and Noble and they fail to advertise that I can probably find the same book for half price at Half Price Books! It's like they're two different entities or something! This is exactly why I never shop at supermarkets! There's bound to be something in my cart that is less expensive at another supermarket and that makes me SO ANGRY WITH THEIR DISHONESTY sometimes I just throw eggs at the cashiers instead! So technically I don't buy anything at the supermarket because I've been kicked out of all of them but only technically!

[pandamonium]

Something I only came to realize after buying a Kindle (which I otherwise love, BTW) is that quite frequently the Kindle edition is more expensive than the paperback one. This I just have a hard time understanding. No printing fees, just use the same text they likely have on a computer file somewhere anyway, so what justifies the higher price?

Publishers are jerks. But Amazon offers enough free content, and allows you to put your own files on the device, so I can merely smug at the publishers instead of angry at them.

Also, in the US at least, new paperbacks run $15-20 dollars--I hardly ever buy new books, though. Imo, $5-$10 is the pricepoint for ebooks; I think publishers should try to get more people to buy ebooks, but if they slash the ebook prices they'd be undercutting themselves. So maybe that's why they're jerks--they don't want to compete with themselves.

[Miisanthrope]

Yeah, if I could buy any e-book for 4.99 or whatever I would probably buy them all the damn time (whether I get around to actually reading them or not), much like phone apps.

[MisterMarc]

Also, in the US at least, new paperbacks run $15-20 dollars--I hardly ever buy new books, though. Imo, $5-$10 is the pricepoint for ebooks; I think publishers should try to get more people to buy ebooks, but if they slash the ebook prices they'd be undercutting themselves. So maybe that's why they're jerks--they don't want to compete with themselves.

I think part of the problem is that the old publishing model is to release a hardcover, wait several months, then release a paperback. This helped justify a high price ($20-$30) on a brand new novel, and boosted sales on hardcovers (because that's all that was available). Surprise, all of that pricing wasn't just to cover the hardback costs. Now, with e-books, there is no change in format for new releases, so it's harder to double-dip/access multiple price points the way publishers had before. The result is that there's new visibility for customers to a stacked pricing model that was previously hidden by a format change. E-books are as stripped as a title gets, and customers are realizing that publishers were hiding all kinds of additional profit in their various formats and releases. But publishers don't want to lose profit they previously counted on, and their current business model needs to operate. It's going to be a slow transition, but it will happen.

[Johnny Slick]

Fine, as long as the profit margins go down AFTER I get published. 

[Skeptress]

I've never encountered a paper book in a bookstore for $10. Well, maybe twenty years ago or so, but an average science fiction novel costs about $30.

Actually, it's been a while since I've checked, so don't take that as gospel...

Dude where do you live?

[Desert Fox]

Unless they went up a lot in teh last year or so, that does seem pretty high

[Caffiene]

I've never encountered a paper book in a bookstore for $10. Well, maybe twenty years ago or so, but an average science fiction novel costs about $30.

Actually, it's been a while since I've checked, so don't take that as gospel...

Dude where do you live?

Hes an aussie. We get ripped off on all sorts of things, but we get especially ripped off on books. The Australian government has a protectionist import policy to "help" the local publishers. Basically you arent allowed to commercially import books except for a few very specific exceptions - they all have to be printed and distributed by aussie publishers.

So retail stores here are forced by the publishers to accept prices in the $20 to $30 range, despite the fact that I as a private consumer can buy the exact same book delivered to my door all the way from the UK for a total cost of half the price (or even less).

Id revise his estimate down from $30 to about $25 for a large fantasy/sci-fi paperback, but still...

[arthwollipot]

I've never encountered a paper book in a bookstore for $10. Well, maybe twenty years ago or so, but an average science fiction novel costs about $30.

Actually, it's been a while since I've checked, so don't take that as gospel...

Dude where do you live?

Hes an aussie. We get ripped off on all sorts of things, but we get especially ripped off on books. The Australian government has a protectionist import policy to "help" the local publishers. Basically you arent allowed to commercially import books except for a few very specific exceptions - they all have to be printed and distributed by aussie publishers.

So retail stores here are forced by the publishers to accept prices in the $20 to $30 range, despite the fact that I as a private consumer can buy the exact same book delivered to my door all the way from the UK for a total cost of half the price (or even less).

Id revise his estimate down from $30 to about $25 for a large fantasy/sci-fi paperback, but still...

Like I said, it's been a while since I've actually bought a book at a bookstore, so yeah.

[Caffiene]

Like I said, it's been a while since I've actually bought a book at a bookstore, so yeah.

Yeah, me either, except for a few gifts.

Funnily enough what cured me of buying retail was working in a major bookstore. I realised that I got a 40% staff discount off most of the books I liked... and I could still save a noticeable amount by ordering from overseas instead.

[Plastique]

Hes an aussie. We get ripped off on all sorts of things

Same with NZ. Across the board, things definitely seem more expensive compared to US and UK.

[arthwollipot]

You could say it's the cost of shipping to the other side of the world, but it really isn't - most stuff is manufactured in Asia these days, and doesn't cost all that much to ship. It's politics - shitty, shitty politics.

[MikeHz]

I used to get most of my books from the library or the used book store. Now, Kindle gets a lot of my money. But, I'm hooked. It's just so much easier to read on the Kindle, or one of its apps.

As with all companies, Amazon has a fiduciary obligation to its shareholders to sell their product for what it's worth. Otherwise, the shareholders will want to know why the company is giving away part of their value.