If "Buy" buttons are restored to MacMillan's new-release ebook titles at prices of $12.99 to $14.99 in the Kindle Store, will anyone pay attention to the buy buttons?
In a paid advertisement that appeared on the Publisher's Marketplace website today, MacMillan Publishing CEO says the following:
To: Macmillan Authors and Illustrators
cc: Literary Agents
From: John Sargent
I am sorry I have been silent since Saturday. We have been in constant discussions with Amazon since then. Things have moved far enough that hopefully this is the last time I will be writing to you on this subject.
Over the last few years we have been deeply concerned about the pricing of electronic books. That pricing, combined with the traditional business model we were using, was creating a market that we believe was fundamentally unbalanced. In the last three weeks, from a standing start we have moved to a new business model. We will make less money on the sale of e books, but we will have a stable and rational market. To repeat myself from last Sunday's letter, we will now have a business model that will ensure our intellectual property will be available digitally through many channels, at a price that is both fair to the consumer and that allows those who create and publish it to be fairly compensated.
We have also started discussions with all our other partners in the digital book world. While there is still lots of work to be done, they have all agreed to move to the agency model.
And now on to royalties. Three or four weeks ago, we began discussions with the Author's Guild on their concerns about our new royalty terms. We indicated then that we would be flexible and that we were prepared to move to a higher rate for digital books. In ongoing discussions with our major agents at the beginning of this week, we began informing them of our new terms. The change to an agency model will bring about yet another round of discussion on royalties, and we look forward to solving this next step in the puzzle with you.
A word about Amazon. This has been a very difficult time. Many of you are wondering what has taken so long for Amazon and Macmillan to reach a conclusion. I want to assure you that Amazon has been working very, very hard and always in good faith to find a way forward with us. Though we do not always agree, I remain full of admiration and respect for them. Both of us look forward to being back in business as usual.
And a salute to the bricks and mortar retailers who sell your books in their stores and on their related websites. Their support for you, and us, has been remarkable over the last week. From large chains to small independents, they committed to working harder than ever to help your books find your readers.
Lastly, my deepest thanks to you, our authors and illustrators. Macmillan and Amazon as corporations had our differences that needed to be resolved. You are the ones whose books lost their buy buttons. And yet you have continued to be terrifically supportive of us and of what we are trying to accomplish. It is a great joy to be your publisher.
I cannot tell you when we will resume business as usual with Amazon, and needless to say I can promise nothing on the buy buttons. You can tell by the tone of this letter though that I feel the time is getting near to hand.
All best,
John
10 comments:
Hey, it's more information than Amazon is providing.
Certainly more words, in any case.
But for most Kindle Nation readers, I suspect, this is not so much a struggle between MacMillan and Amazon as an attack by publishers on readers, one in which unfortunately too many authors have chosen the wrong side.
I know this is petty and small to point out, but I would have expected one of the most powerful men in publishing to show better use of English grammar.
Especially since he had to know his letter was going to hit the internet almost as soon as he sent it out. *sigh*
OH, well, you can't tell the 'big boys' anything.
$12.99 to $14.99?
Gotta be a VERY darned good book for me to spend that kind of money for it, Macmillan.
And it's gotta be available in my preferred format at the time I want it, too... not months later.
In short, if you think I'm gonna pay fifteen bucks for an e-book after waiting weeks or months for you to deign to release it in digital format, you are probably in for a really big surprise.
It would be great if Amazon could provide a link in the Kindle Store that displays books recently reduced to $9.99 or less.
When I see a book at a higher price point, I wait until the price drops to $9.99 or less but it is hit-or-miss when I get around to check for a price drop.
By grouping recenly reduced books in one place and making it easier to identify when a price comes within the "normal" kindle range, I would anticipate a volume surge when a book makes the list.
High volume on recently reduced books could send a strong message to the publishers
If ebook prices go up then my Kindle will not be used much anymore. I will not pay more than $10 for an ebook. I will be heading back to the library or buying paperbacks. I am glad I did not purchase the Kindle 2, nor will I be upgrading if the prices rise to $12-$15. I loved my kindle1 but the pubishers are going to kill off the ebooks.
Here is a letter I sent to MacMillan, HarperCollins and Hachette publishers with a cc to the Kindle feedback team:
"Hi,
I just bought a Kindle. Now I hear that you are teaming up with several other publishers to jack up the price of books. I admire your confidence. That you believe you can charge as much for an electronic file as you would for a hard cover without all the printing, binding, transportation and storage costs that go along with physical books. Just think of the gold mine you've tapped! Why not charge $100 a book! Buggy-whip makers of the world unite!
Unfortunately nobody asked us consumers. I can't speak for everyone but I will tell you that 9.99 is my final price point for most books. Crank the price up as much as you want but I'm not going to buy your products if they cost more than that.
Kindle owners are hard-core readers at a time when reading is declining. If I were you, I'd be trying really hard not to tick them off. Otherwise, they'll just start watching "NCIS" on their iPods.
I wonder if Congress or the Justice Department would think that this is a case of price-fixing or collusion?
You have a great day,
Rgds
Nice letter, Chris. I wonder if they are even thinking about the fact that if we Kindle owners are readers then we probably are also card carrying (and using) public library users. That's where I got 99% of my books before getting my Kindle as a gift last Christmas and I can easily go back to the library if the cost of e-books gets too prohibitive.
I appreciate the other comments here. I am particularly interested in ebooks because of the reduced environmental impact and my overly full bookshelves at home. I expect prices to reflect the reduced costs of production and won't pay more than $10 for an ebook.
I still use the library as well as my Kindle (and Nook), and will continue to do so. I'll just wait for best-sellers at my library (which I already support with annual donation) rather than bow to pricing tactics, and continue to read more indie and older titles.
I think publishers should be more wary of an increase in usenet sharing if they jack up prices in spite of the reduced costs of printing, shipping and warehousing. There is active sharing out there, and people who will pirate books if publishers price themselves out of competition, thus encouraging a lax moral stance on copyright infringement.
I am hoping avid reading consumers, like me, will hold fast against the higher prices.
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