Another publishing giant goes 'agency model.' - CrimeSpace2024-03-28T16:29:56Zhttp://crimespace.ning.com/forum/topics/another-publishing-giant-goes?commentId=537324%3AComment%3A226392&feed=yes&xn_auth=noAmazon is selling ebooks at a…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-08:537324:Comment:2265072010-02-08T01:28:10.511ZEric Christophersonhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/datahog
Amazon is selling ebooks at a loss to hasten the adoption of ebooks by the book-buying public as well as to sell more Kindles, two goals intertwined. They can't achieve one goal without the other so both goals are key to them I'm sure, but I don't think they're quite equal, here's why:<br />
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I suspect Amazon knows their Kindle will be overtaken or beaten in the long run by other hardware-focused companies, such as Apple, so that's why I think the primary concern for Amazon is to establish a sizeable…
Amazon is selling ebooks at a loss to hasten the adoption of ebooks by the book-buying public as well as to sell more Kindles, two goals intertwined. They can't achieve one goal without the other so both goals are key to them I'm sure, but I don't think they're quite equal, here's why:<br />
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I suspect Amazon knows their Kindle will be overtaken or beaten in the long run by other hardware-focused companies, such as Apple, so that's why I think the primary concern for Amazon is to establish a sizeable ebook market as soon as possible, because they believe they can make more money in such an environment. Thus selling ebooks is really what they're about, and I believe that's what the editor from the WP I quoted was implying. Where does Sony fit into all…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264482010-02-07T15:10:58.050ZDonna Carrickhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/DonnaCarrick
Where does Sony fit into all this?
Where does Sony fit into all this? Though iPhone is a lovely pie…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264472010-02-07T15:10:07.277ZDonna Carrickhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/DonnaCarrick
Though iPhone is a lovely piece of technology. I must admit, I love my iphone, and if I had the budget, I'd be looking into the iPad. (Despite the name, which was obviously not run past even one woman). With Kindle's refusal to work with me as a Canadian writer, I'd be sorely pressed to have much sympathy towards them as they face growing competition. The people at Apple have been a joy to work with, in my experience so far.
Though iPhone is a lovely piece of technology. I must admit, I love my iphone, and if I had the budget, I'd be looking into the iPad. (Despite the name, which was obviously not run past even one woman). With Kindle's refusal to work with me as a Canadian writer, I'd be sorely pressed to have much sympathy towards them as they face growing competition. The people at Apple have been a joy to work with, in my experience so far. If their key concern is selli…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264372010-02-07T14:14:05.622ZJon Loomishttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonLoomis
If their key concern is selling books, why would they sell them at a loss in order to artificially drive Kindle sales? It's an unsustainable business model that values device over content (tail wags dog, as I said), and publishers naturally find it objectionable. Writers probably should, too. As a producer of content (you know--books!), I'm extremely leery of any emerging publishing scenario that devalues content, whether it's the wave of the fucking future or not. That certainly seems to be…
If their key concern is selling books, why would they sell them at a loss in order to artificially drive Kindle sales? It's an unsustainable business model that values device over content (tail wags dog, as I said), and publishers naturally find it objectionable. Writers probably should, too. As a producer of content (you know--books!), I'm extremely leery of any emerging publishing scenario that devalues content, whether it's the wave of the fucking future or not. That certainly seems to be the trend in the Kindle store, where customers are trained increasingly to expect content to be heavily discounted or, better yet, free. As they say in the newspaper biz (or what's left of it), free is not a business model. What I've been saying. Get th…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264332010-02-07T13:51:24.445ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
What I've been saying. Get the agents busy.
What I've been saying. Get the agents busy. What Amazon did to Macmillan…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264102010-02-07T03:50:47.759ZJon Loomishttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonLoomis
<i>What Amazon did to Macmillan authors was temporary.</i><br />
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Maybe. We'll see.<br />
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<i>Over the past few years, Amazon may have sold more Macmillan authors than any other source including B&N.</i><br />
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I was a big fan of Amazon right up until they decided to screw me over in order to make a point with which I happen to vehemently disagree. I don't think Amazon's impulse to throw its weight around in order to get preferential treatment from publishers is something to be admired, but we'll just have…
<i>What Amazon did to Macmillan authors was temporary.</i><br />
<br />
Maybe. We'll see.<br />
<br />
<i>Over the past few years, Amazon may have sold more Macmillan authors than any other source including B&N.</i><br />
<br />
I was a big fan of Amazon right up until they decided to screw me over in order to make a point with which I happen to vehemently disagree. I don't think Amazon's impulse to throw its weight around in order to get preferential treatment from publishers is something to be admired, but we'll just have to agree to disagree on that one. I also don't think holding up Walmart as an example of what's right and good about Amazon's business plan is particularly convincing, at least for me. In my view WalMart represents pretty much everything that's wrong with the current state of the retail economy in this country, particularly in its insistence on ever-lower prices from manufacturers as it seeks to fill every American household with incredibly cheap crap from China (and the hell with American manufacturing and the tax-base and everybody but WalMart stockholders). But we'll probably have to agree to disagree on that one, too. What Amazon did to Macmillan…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264042010-02-07T02:22:05.353ZJon Spoelstrahttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonSpoelstra
What Amazon did to Macmillan authors was temporary. Over the past few years, Amazon may have sold more Macmillan authors than any other source including B&N.<br />
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As for the retail price fixing, many companies have tried very hard to do that. Sometimes they would stop selling their products to a particular retail chain. Retailers retaliated by getting the products from other sources. A good example of this is Ping golf clubs. However, by and large, that is a thing of the past. Is a company…
What Amazon did to Macmillan authors was temporary. Over the past few years, Amazon may have sold more Macmillan authors than any other source including B&N.<br />
<br />
As for the retail price fixing, many companies have tried very hard to do that. Sometimes they would stop selling their products to a particular retail chain. Retailers retaliated by getting the products from other sources. A good example of this is Ping golf clubs. However, by and large, that is a thing of the past. Is a company really going to tell Walmart that the price is too low? Of course not because they will sell a lot of the product at the lower price. I don't know that that's true…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264032010-02-07T01:09:14.682ZJon Loomishttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonLoomis
I don't know that that's true. I worked in music retail/wholesale for a number of years, and manufacturers in that industry are often very strict in setting acceptable retail discount structures below MSRP--and they enforce those discount structures strictly, even with big online sellers (it's called MAP, or minimum advertised pricing). They have an interest, you see, in leveling the playing field so that big retailers like Guitar Center or Musicians Friend can't run the Mom and Pop music store…
I don't know that that's true. I worked in music retail/wholesale for a number of years, and manufacturers in that industry are often very strict in setting acceptable retail discount structures below MSRP--and they enforce those discount structures strictly, even with big online sellers (it's called MAP, or minimum advertised pricing). They have an interest, you see, in leveling the playing field so that big retailers like Guitar Center or Musicians Friend can't run the Mom and Pop music store on the corner out of business with loss-leader deals like the one Amazon's been pulling on ebooks. Publishers are thinking broad competition in retail bookselling is a good thing, and virtual monopolies in any area of the industry are not. They're thinking selling ebooks at a loss undercuts pricing across the board and eventually puts them out of business, along with a broad swath of booksellers and most of their authors.<br />
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And I'd be interested in a response from you, Jon, about Amazon's playing hardball with the careers and livelihoods of Macmillan authors. Does that seem like an acceptable, ethical business practice to you? One of the things that Macmil…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2264022010-02-07T00:21:02.113ZJon Spoelstrahttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonSpoelstra
One of the things that Macmillian wanted was to control the RETAIL price of their books. This type of control is very rare in any type of retail. Sure, there is the 'suggested retail price', but it is still the retailer's choice on the final price. For Macmillian to ask for price control from Amazon just gets me to wonder that publishers are thinking in yesterday's world. Shame, shame on them.
One of the things that Macmillian wanted was to control the RETAIL price of their books. This type of control is very rare in any type of retail. Sure, there is the 'suggested retail price', but it is still the retailer's choice on the final price. For Macmillian to ask for price control from Amazon just gets me to wonder that publishers are thinking in yesterday's world. Shame, shame on them. Yep. And I think it's be naiv…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-02-07:537324:Comment:2263992010-02-07T00:07:26.051ZJon Loomishttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JonLoomis
Yep. And I think it's be naive not to expect more--and weirder--upheaval across the industry over the next few years. The rules--and deals--are all being rewritten as we watch from the sielines.
Yep. And I think it's be naive not to expect more--and weirder--upheaval across the industry over the next few years. The rules--and deals--are all being rewritten as we watch from the sielines.