4 ms·
The underlying problem with the ebook market is the way publishers mandate the use of DRM. Under the old model, Amazon was free to sell ebooks under cost, with
by gamble 15y ago
The underlying problem with the ebook market is the way publishers mandate the use of DRM.
Under the old model, Amazon was free to sell ebooks under cost, with the goal of quickly establishing a Kindle monopoly and placing itself in a negotiating position that would eventually allow them to capture most of the profit in the ebook market. The publishers and Apple introduced the agency model to prevent Amazon from dominating ebooks.
Amazon's strategy wouldn't have worked if not for DRM. If the publishers instead mandated that ebooks couldn't use DRM but let Amazon sell at any price, there would be no reason for Amazon to sell below cost because customers would be able to migrate to another vendor's platform at any time.
- yousureimnot 15y agoDRM is nasty, but it has nothing to do with Amazon's model. The Kindle exists to sell books, not the other way around. You can read and buy Kindle books on an iPad or a computer, and (on average) they're going to make one hell of a lot more profit on eBooks than cheap consumer electronics.
- gamble 15y agoDRM is what provides the barrier against switching between platforms. I have around 200 Kindle books. If I wanted to switch to another platform, I'd either have to carry two e-readers or lose access to a big chunk of my library. It also makes me less likely to buy from smaller vendors, because the music industry's history shows that when publishers with DRM-encrypted products go bankrupt, they tend to shut down their DRM servers and their customers lose access to their purchases.
- mahyarm 15y agoTo be honest, a large chunk of kindle books on amazon.com don't have DRM enabled. Try converting your kindle library with calibre and be surprised that some of your paid books don't have drm. Calibre will fail on books with drm enabled unless you install a 3rd party plugin. For me, I choose to keep on using amazon.com not because of DRM switching costs, but the connivence, library breadth and syncing services on many devices. Doing it manually with calibre and a nook is just a pain.
- naner 15y agoCharles Stross came to a similar conclusion. This was on HN awhile back. http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2011/11/cutting-their-own-throats.html http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/2011/11/cutting-...