The New York Times asks the question ‘How do you make your book a best seller on the Kindle?’ Their answer: Give copies away.The article poses the question as to what is meant by “best-selling” e-books on the Kindle. After all ‘best selling’ by what says means that something has been ‘sold’ not given away.
So we have the public domain give-aways, the aspiring authors promotions and then the publisher’s own limited window free promotions. Why are these counted alongside the paid for books? If the charts were only ‘paid for’ would we see ebooks for sale for a cent?
So do publishers want tiered pricing and to re-establish the hardback as the premium rendition? Do they want to delay ebook releases in order to protect revenues and re-establish the hardback as the premium rendition? Do they want to give away ebooks to promote them and again protect revenues and re-establish the hardback as the premium rendition?
There are also cases where giveaways are not of the latest title but of older titles by an author, with the purpose not of promoting the back list sales but to get readers to buy the new title at the expense of the back list.
Some would suggest that it’s a case of every way but loose. Others would suggest that it’s about who controls pricing. What is clear is that there is no harmony between publisher houses and it may be a case of every way but win.
We can learn from other sectors. Once you let the free out the bag, getting it back in is hard, if not impossible. So what is the price that publishers feel a ebook is worth? It is clear that the ball today is with the publishers but if they can’t decide, others will.
Brian Murray, chief executive of HarperCollins is quoted, “free is not a business model.”
No comments:
Post a Comment