If You Can’t Compete . . . Collude!
The DOJ has put together an absolutely fascinating timeline for the price collusion efforts between Apple and major publishers. (Read the entire thing here. Really. Read it. It’s the most thrilling narrative to come out of the Big 6 this year).
What’s amazing about this string of evidence is seeing how everyone involved felt like it was the most normal thing ever to ring up their competitors and band together. There was no thought to the reader. The goal, it seems, was to hurt Amazon and to protect print books.
Meanwhile, authors are screwed with higher book prices (which leads to less sales). Readers are screwed with higher prices (which means less to read or moving on to other forms of entertainment). Publishers are screwed because they could make more money selling a greater number of books at lower prices (please don’t anyone tell them this. It’s a secret that only indie authors and every other business major in the universe knows).
But none of that mattered. The bookstores were happy, the English majors who love books and hate the exact same story presented on e-ink were happy, and Amazon’s customers were sad, and that was all that mattered!
I’m sure we’ll hear from Scott Turow at any time to tell us how Apple is great for authors and Amazon sucks. Get on it, Scott!
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Apple won't be happy until they own all distribution for books, music, and movies/tv. As you mentioned, this will only hurt authors and readers. I hope that we as readers recognize this and take our business to bookstores and companies that put reading and storytelling first.
Considering how many actual paperback books are cheaper than ebooks, who cares, they all have dirty hands.
I was a long time lover of Barnes & Nobel until I became firmly convinced that they were (and still are) disadvantaging e-books in their pricing and marketing strategies (presumably in defense of all their bricks and mortar stores and the extra overhead that must be covered.) Last June, after two years of internal conflict, I turned my back on B&N and moved all of my book business (hardback, paperback and electronic) to Amazon (which I previously avoided for these purchases). During the past 12 months I've purchased twice the books, greatly expanded my reading horizons, been introduced to a world of authors/books previously unknown, and never once regretted my decision. I have not been in a B&N store in 12 months and I have not purchased anything on-line from B&N either. I have let my membership (rip-off) expire and unsubscribed from all of their emails (I think). This is a case of a long-time leader losing it's way, not keeping up with technology and competition,gouging loyal customers and plotting its way to self destruction. RIP B&N your time has passed!
An interesting read. The last page with them saying to amazon to agree to an agency model or no books for you.Disgusting really. Like you said Hugh, dont they realise that thus kind of thing is not only illegal, but they are bound to get caught? Even if they delete the emails to each other, Amazon can just complain and they will get found out anyway. Anti competitive price fixing is not that hard to prove.
They get the stupid award for that, as well as for, like you said, not realising that getting more people to read more books as a habit might be good for their industry.
Sigh.
