newnetland

European Tech Analysis

“Reading and the Demand for Books”

Posted on 7. September 2016 Written by Marcel Weiss

Joshua Gans at Digitopoly:

If eBooks are seen as competing with physical books, then you are going to worry about the price of eBooks and want them to be priced higher so as to keep up demand for physical books. But if they are not competing, then the analysis can change significantly. In particular, if I am shopping for a gift for someone am I more likely to buy them a book I have read and liked or something else? The point being that if the price of an eBook is reduced in the Summer and that leads to more people buying that book as a gift in November than they are competing but are complements in the market.

This also hits on analyses such as those from Mike Shatzkin. He argues that big publishers are having trouble getting big hits because prices for eBooks are too high. This means that they can’t pick up an unknown author with a good book because no one will shell out $14.99 to read it. For Shatzkin, he argues that eBook prices are kept high so as not to reduce physical book sales. To overcome the ‘discovery’ issue, he suggests having a promotional period for eBooks. However, he argues that is a tough sell as physical booksellers won’t be happy. So publishers don’t try that.

Related

Filed Under: Links

Analysis and links to articles on the big picture of the tech industry and the networked information economy.

Author: Marcel Weiss is a writer, consultant and fighter for pareto-optima. He is thinking and linking from Berlin, Germany.

contact: marcel@neunetz.com

Marcel Weiss on LinkedIn
newnetland on Twitter
RSS-Feed

Subscribe by e-mail to newnetland (E-mails go out weekly, on Fridays.)

Recent Analysis

Implications of the Microsoft Wunderlist deal

Zoë Keating and the problem with streaming services being shop *&* record collection

Apple should review App Review

Would Microsoft fork Android? Not likely.

Define web platform

Recent Links

“What if Our Problems Aren’t Tech Problems?”

“We are not reaching 1.5ºC earlier than previously thought”

“The Digital Nomads Did Not Prepare for This”

“Various first words”

“Germany Drops Idea Of ‘Pre-Flagging’ Legal Uploads, Which Could Have Stopped EU Copyright Filters Blocking Memes, Parodies, Quotes And Creative Commons Material”

Categories

  • Analysis
  • Links
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Focus Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in