Comments on: Some Thoughts on the Economic Viability of E-Books

By: John

John — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:24:19 +0000

That really depends on your school. Our slogan is "The Campus of Tomorrow" (www.ggc.usg.edu) and all of the professors are strongly encouraged to choose books that have an e-book component. So far every class I've been in since I decided to go back to school has had an electronic book option. I've had classes where you can buy the paper book, the PDF in its entirety, or pay per chapter for a PDF. My microeconomics class has either a paper book, or you can pay to rent a flash version that is online only for a 6 month subscription. I've only taken one class recently that had a Kindle option, but I'll be sure to suggest that they seek out publishers that do have Kindle textbooks.

By: John

John — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 05:24:19 +0000

By: Daniel Miessler

Daniel Miessler — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 13:46:00 +0000

Great comment. But are all textbooks avaliable electronically?

By: John

John — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 05:41:47 +0000

The real payoff in e-books is college textbooks. A typical undergrad book costs around $300 at your college book store. The PDF versions of most textbooks are 50%-60% off the paper book price. Also consider that many professors change books every semester, which means you can't sell your book back so DRM really isn't a concern, and I actually managed to put my Statistics and Accounting books to use in my IT Security job so I'm keeping them anyway. The last time I managed to sell a book was on Facebook and the person I sold it to had to drive from a college 50 miles away. If you were to buy 1 semesters worth of text books on a Kindle you've paid for the kindle. You also get the benefit of not carrying around a backpack full of books. I never loan out books and mass market paperbacks will only fetch you $1 at a used book store, so putting them in the recycle bin is more convenient than making a special trip just for $2-$3. I see e-publishing in the academic space as being very economical TODAY. With the money you save on your college text books the kindle will pay for itself in 1 semester and then any leisure reading is cheaper than buying paper books, doesn't take up room in your house/apt, and has the environmental benefit of not using paper. As far as I'm concerned e-publishing has reached its prime and will only get better.

By: Jon

Jon — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 01:28:57 +0000

There is no reason for e-books to cost more than paper books. Every book in existence starts off as an electronic file that can be saved as a PDF. That being said, when I worked for an educational publisher, I was told that only about 10% of a book's cost was for the printing of the physical book. That percentage is probably much higher for novels, since it doesn't have the enormous editorial overhead of educational titles. I think that Amazon should be giving users an economic incentive to switch to e-books to encourage new users.

I like the idea of the Kindle, but I probably won't buy one until there is a full color version and until there is a less restrictive. I might make an exception if my local newspaper becomes available in an e-book format, since I read the paper daily.

By: Steven G. Harms

Steven G. Harms — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 16:46:20 +0000

pro-Kindle: Never have to move your library again. Boxes full of dead wood suck, suck, suck to move.

By: Robby Colvin

Robby Colvin — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 02:00:18 +0000

I'm basically in the same boat right now. I don't see the need to buy a Kindle when the books cost more than a paper book. Like your friend, I do not see any reason that those e-books should cost more. For now, I'll stick with the library and buy only the books I really need.

By: TIMM

TIMM — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 21:54:21 +0000

provide incentives. bundle the kindle with 500 free no-copyright books, including a dictionary, thesaurus, the complete works of Shakespeare, and similar works.

Also, provide different bundles for various age groups.

Marketing it would be a cinch. Heck, I'm sure giving them away to school districts of the state capitols would make headway and enhance exposure. There have been programs where giveaways are budgeted annually, so that so many are distributed, with the promise that so many more will be matched if actual sales quotas are met.

Beyond that, e-books might face a problem with recycling programs that filter old paper into new paper with government money, which artificially drives down paper prices for certain book distributors, especially if they have government contracts. Companies like Houghton Mifflin aren't going to dismantle their so carefully erected empires for the sake of voluntarily competing against other e-book start ups on a fair field.

-=T=-

By: Maxo

Maxo — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 21:15:10 +0000

I would be more willing to buy e-books under the following conditions:
1. The content is offered in an open standard where I get to pick my reading device.
2. The price is significantly cheaper to make up for the fact I can't loan it out, and will also subsidize the fact I won't be keeping it permanently.
I love the idea of cheap disposable digital media. If I could pay 10¢ for a song for a week, or maybe a few buck for a book for a few weeks.