As I understand it, the core problem is that when Apple price-matches, the 70/30 split between the publisher and Apple doesn't change. If the other retailer (e.

As I understand it, the core problem is that when Apple price-matches, the 70/30 split between the publisher and Apple doesn't change. If the other retailer (e.g. Amazon) has the freedom to set their prices via the wholesale model, the publisher will start making less money in the iBookstore (and any other "agency MFN" retailers, which eventually included Nook as a willing participant) on any book that retailer chooses to discount, even though the publisher has no control over that price. To avoid this problem, each publisher has to switch all of their retailers to the agency model - giving up the extra money they make when a wholesale retailer charges their customer a discounted price but pays the publisher the full wholesale price in return for greater control over the prices the final customers pay.