Would you pay more for ebook than paperback? - Page 8

QuantumIguana · 10-17-2012, 03:24 PM

Just because other people don't value things the same way you do doesn't mean they "don't get it." What is illogical about preferring paper books to e-books? When we read for enjoyment, we read for empotional reasons, as enjoyment is an emotion.

Nilotikus · 10-17-2012, 06:48 PM

One of the great promises with e-books is that the price of books will be much, much lower than paperbacks. It's obvious really - a typical e-book is little more than a large web page. The price of production (excluding the writing) is practically nothing when compared the the long assembly line of producing a paper book. This begins in the forest growing then cutting down cut down trees, the cost of a designer, printing, transport costs as the book is moved from place to place to end up in a shop and finally bought or posted out to you.

However I've been dismayed at how little this big difference has been reflected in the pricing of e-books generally. This is a massive rip off of customers, insulting to their intelligence that they don't notice.

I want e-books to be sold at a price that reflects their true value. Because of that I would not pay more than a paper book for an e-book because if sellers can get these grossly inflated prices they will do.

tompe · 10-17-2012, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nilotikus

One of the great promises with e-books is that the price of books will be much, much lower than paperbacks. It's obvious really - a typical e-book is little more than a large web page. The price of production (excluding the writing) is practically nothing when compared the the long assembly line of producing a paper book. This begins in the forest growing then cutting down cut down trees, the cost of a designer, printing, transport costs as the book is moved from place to place to end up in a shop and finally bought or posted out to you.

However I've been dismayed at how little this big difference has been reflected in the pricing of e-books generally. This is a massive rip off of customers, insulting to their intelligence that they don't notice.

I want e-books to be sold at a price that reflects their true value. Because of that I would not pay more than a paper book for an e-book because if sellers can get these grossly inflated prices they will do.

And the cost of paper book production is practically nothing compared to the cost of writing and producing the finished text.

sabredog · 10-17-2012, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tompe

And the cost of paper book production is practically nothing compared to the cost of writing and producing the finished text.

But yet again higher than the cost of digital production and distribution of a completed digital manuscript of said book.

Marycv · 10-17-2012, 11:37 PM

I don't know how much a difference it is between them. I only buy ebooks. It doesn't hurt to compare with other companies, they could be cheaper than amazon. I find Kobo is cheaper than Amazon on most ebooks.

xendula · 10-18-2012, 01:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marycv

I don't know how much a difference it is between them. I only buy ebooks. It doesn't hurt to compare with other companies, they could be cheaper than amazon. I find Kobo is cheaper than Amazon on most ebooks.

Interesting, I find the exact opposite. I check my wishlist on luzme.com to compare prices every now and then.

jarrahloh · 10-18-2012, 02:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xendula

Interesting, I find the exact opposite. I check my wishlist on luzme.com to compare prices every now and then.

Agreed. I have both a Kindle and Kobo touch, but now use the Kindle more, simply because of the price point. Perhaps it depends on what country you are in though?

tompe · 10-18-2012, 06:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sabredog

But yet again higher than the cost of digital production and distribution of a completed digital manuscript of said book.

Yes, but so little higher that you cannot expect a big difference in price. So the whole argument I commented fails.

spindlegirl · 10-18-2012, 06:18 AM

With Kindle I have not yet paid the 15% sales tax that I did with Kobo books. With the Canadian dollar doing ok, I stick with the cross-border pricing.

xendula · 10-18-2012, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jarrahloh

Agreed. I have both a Kindle and Kobo touch, but now use the Kindle more, simply because of the price point. Perhaps it depends on what country you are in though?

Maybe. I check US prices. You?

HarryT · 10-18-2012, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tompe

Yes, but so little higher that you cannot expect a big difference in price. So the whole argument I commented fails.

Plus there's the fact that, in the EU, eBooks are subject to the standard rate of VAT (which is 20% in the UK), whereas paper books are typically taxed at a lower rate (zero in the UK).

hwlester · 10-18-2012, 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xendula

Interesting, I find the exact opposite. I check my wishlist on luzme.com to compare prices every now and then.

Wasn't even aware of luzme.com. Looks cool. Just tried it to search for an ebook that was released 2 weeks ago (that Amazon and Apple had on release day, but ebooks.com didn't get until a week after it was released) and discovered that Kobo finally got it.

Will add this to my arsenal of sites to check for bargains.

QuantumIguana · 10-18-2012, 04:38 PM

If I walk into a store and see that the store charges more for same item in a different package, I want to know why. If they tell me that the more expensive item is more expensive to produce, that explains the difference. But if the more expensive item is actually cheaper to produce, then they must think I'm a real sucker if they expect me to pay more. I have too many other items to choose from than to have someone jerk me around like that.

Yes, I realize there are expenses in producing e-books. But they are less than with paper books, so at the very least I shouldn't be asked to pay more for an e-book than for a paper book.

There was an experiment involving two people and a certain amount of money. One person would offer the second person some of the money, and if the second person refused, neither got any of the money. The experimenters were surprised that people would turn down offers they thought were unreasonable, even if it meant they got nothing. As an artificial one-time transaction, they may have had a point, but what they missed is that this was basic human nature. Once people realize that you will take the short end of the stick, that's what they will keep offering you. But if you demand a more reasonable deal, they will know that in the future they have to offer you a reasonable deal.

xendula · 10-18-2012, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hwlester

Wasn't even aware of luzme.com. Looks cool. Just tried it to search for an ebook that was released 2 weeks ago (that Amazon and Apple had on release day, but ebooks.com didn't get until a week after it was released) and discovered that Kobo finally got it.

Will add this to my arsenal of sites to check for bargains.

It's great. You can import your wishlist (which will get updated automatically henceforth) and it will send you updates whenever prices change in any of the stores that you select in your preferences. Plus, they are adding support for the rest of the countries.

Laridae · 10-18-2012, 08:50 PM

No, not at this point.
I'm relatively new to ereading so I'm pretty much evenly divided between ebooks and print books these days.

While I do enjoy the convenience (and, OK, the nerdy novelty) of ebooks, I would resist paying more for it if I could conveniently find the equivalent printed book available at a lower price.

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10-17-2012, 03:24 PM	#106
QuantumIguana Philosopher Posts: 2,034 Karma: 18736532 Join Date: Jan 2012 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2 gen, Kindle Fire 1st Gen, Kindle Touch	Just because other people don't value things the same way you do doesn't mean they "don't get it." What is illogical about preferring paper books to e-books? When we read for enjoyment, we read for empotional reasons, as enjoyment is an emotion.

10-17-2012, 06:48 PM	#107
Nilotikus Nameless Being	One of the great promises with e-books is that the price of books will be much, much lower than paperbacks. It's obvious really - a typical e-book is little more than a large web page. The price of production (excluding the writing) is practically nothing when compared the the long assembly line of producing a paper book. This begins in the forest growing then cutting down cut down trees, the cost of a designer, printing, transport costs as the book is moved from place to place to end up in a shop and finally bought or posted out to you. However I've been dismayed at how little this big difference has been reflected in the pricing of e-books generally. This is a massive rip off of customers, insulting to their intelligence that they don't notice. I want e-books to be sold at a price that reflects their true value. Because of that I would not pay more than a paper book for an e-book because if sellers can get these grossly inflated prices they will do.

10-17-2012, 11:37 PM	#110
Marycv Member Retired Posts: 11 Karma: 680902 Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Canada Device: Samsung Galaxy 2	I don't know how much a difference it is between them. I only buy ebooks. It doesn't hurt to compare with other companies, they could be cheaper than amazon. I find Kobo is cheaper than Amazon on most ebooks.

10-18-2012, 06:18 AM	#114
spindlegirl Wizard Posts: 1,594 Karma: 21245891 Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra h20, Paperwhite 2017, Phone & Tablet w Moonreader	With Kindle I have not yet paid the 15% sales tax that I did with Kobo books. With the Canadian dollar doing ok, I stick with the cross-border pricing.

10-18-2012, 04:38 PM	#118
QuantumIguana Philosopher Posts: 2,034 Karma: 18736532 Join Date: Jan 2012 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2 gen, Kindle Fire 1st Gen, Kindle Touch	If I walk into a store and see that the store charges more for same item in a different package, I want to know why. If they tell me that the more expensive item is more expensive to produce, that explains the difference. But if the more expensive item is actually cheaper to produce, then they must think I'm a real sucker if they expect me to pay more. I have too many other items to choose from than to have someone jerk me around like that. Yes, I realize there are expenses in producing e-books. But they are less than with paper books, so at the very least I shouldn't be asked to pay more for an e-book than for a paper book. There was an experiment involving two people and a certain amount of money. One person would offer the second person some of the money, and if the second person refused, neither got any of the money. The experimenters were surprised that people would turn down offers they thought were unreasonable, even if it meant they got nothing. As an artificial one-time transaction, they may have had a point, but what they missed is that this was basic human nature. Once people realize that you will take the short end of the stick, that's what they will keep offering you. But if you demand a more reasonable deal, they will know that in the future they have to offer you a reasonable deal.

10-18-2012, 08:50 PM	#120
Laridae Addict Posts: 208 Karma: 1203096 Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Ontario, Canada Device: Nexus 7, Blackberry PlayBook, Nexus 4, ChromeBook	No, not at this point. I'm relatively new to ereading so I'm pretty much evenly divided between ebooks and print books these days. While I do enjoy the convenience (and, OK, the nerdy novelty) of ebooks, I would resist paying more for it if I could conveniently find the equivalent printed book available at a lower price.

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