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| The battle to determine the future of e-book pricing |
The current e-book landscape is dominated by the titanic presence of Amazon and their e-book sales. They use a wholesale model to determine the pricing for the e-books they sell. This model allows them to set the price of the books they sell rather than the publisher having the ability to set the price. Apple on the other hand was trying to set up a e-book marketplace of its own using an agency model that would allow the publishers to set the price of e-books rather than Apple itself. The issue surrounding the case is the accusation by Amazon that Apple forced publishers to move to a model that artificially inflated the prices of digital books and hurt consumers. This move would definitely hurt consumers by increasing the price of e-books. The evidence in this case shows many communications in the form of emails and phone calls between the CEOs of the five largest publishing companies during the time that they were all negotiating with Apple over the pricing of e-books on its marketplace. It will be interesting to see what the court decides in this case, because the decision will have immediate consequences for e-book consumers.
Apple's decision to allow the publishers to set the price of their e-books makes sense for those who are willing to pay more for e-books, and it certainly will make Apple more money. I think that people who are using Apple devices obviously don't care too much about the price of their media. An Ipad costs upwards of $500.00, and a standard e-reader costs less than half of that ($200). The publishers are going to make more money selling on Apple's store as well as all believed Amazon's $9.99 pricing to be too low, and wanted a way to change it. If Apple's model of pricing survives this court case, they will have got that way.
I also believe that soon, there will be no more paper books and e-books will take over. However, I don't believe that's a good thing. These tablets nowadays allow students to take notes in the e-books and highlight and search, but most e-books that I've seen go away after a semester usually. Paper books when you buy, you can keep it forever or resell it, yet e-books you can't.
ReplyDeleteI also think you're right about Apple's model of pricing. Most people buy apple products just for the brand. Although, Amazon's tablets are cheaper and probably just as good, some people don't see it as the "real thing" so they choose to spend the $500 on the apple product instead.
Yeah I know what you mean about those e-textbooks. I guess they are considered "rentals". That's the way a lot of digital media is being treated nowadays. Take for instance in video games. Digital downloads of games such as on Steam for PC and the Playstation Network are considered "rentals" even though you pay the full price in many cases. Its is not like buying a physical copy of the same game, where you can sell it or trade it to recoup the cost.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that one day we will no longer print books. I also do not think that it would be a good idea because if the databases or devices loose all the e-books than how would we able to access it. On the other hand, we can keep printed books centuries. I also think the Apple’s e-books market will hurt consumers and make the prices way too expensive than a printed book.
ReplyDeleteI hope that Apple loses the case. I feel that the price for e-books is set appropriately for what you get, digital rights, no ownership. I personally refuse to buy e-books for this reason. I also have a much better reading experience by holding the book and feeling the paper as I turn the page. Technology has had many beneficial contributions, but as with many other changes in the world, you take the good with the bad I suppose.
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