So, today is the “big day” for Apple fans, with the release of the Wi-Fi version of the iPad. Normally, I’d be right there in the hordes salivating over it (probably the 3G version, though) but not this time. I was holding off on pre-ordering because I don’t think the iPad can do what I really want it to do (stream video wirelessly from the iTunes library on my PC) and because it’s pretty darn expensive for something that does the same things as the computers and devices I already own.
Then the flap started about eBook pricing. Now, if you’ve been reading the site for a while, you know I have a Kindle 2 from Amazon, and I love it very much. So when the iPad was announced, and it was mentioned that eBooks in “all” stores, not just the iBookstore, would have the same price, generally STARTING at $9.99 for best-sellers, I paid attention. Because for quite some time, Amazon had a top limit of $9.99 for best-sellers. Sure enough, over the next few weeks, publishers were whining about how much money they’re losing on sales, and how Amazon’s pricing model was unfair, blah blah blah. Basically, sounding just like the music industry 5 years ago. Then some of them started “negotiating” with Amazon, which ended with their books being unavailable in Kindle format. Unfortunately, Amazon couldn’t afford to start losing large portions of the product available for their Kindle device, so they had to give in in the end, and now most eBook prices are set by the publishers (excluding Random House and subsidiaries) in what’s known currently as an “agency” model. What this really means, is that eBook prices can be absolutely ridiculously high compared to the paperback version of the same book. For example, I’m in the middle of reading James Patterson’s “Women’s Murder Club” series. I’ve picked up books 1-6 in various formats, depending on price. Book 7 is next on my list, and take a look at the pricing for paperback, Kindle, and hardcover versions as of today (4/4/2010)
Notice that not only is the Kindle version nearly as expensive as the hardcover version, it’s also TWICE as expensive as the mass market paperback version!! Needless to say, I will not be picking up the Kindle version of this book, or the rest of the books in the series, which are currently priced from $9.99 to $14.99 compared to the $7.99 to $10.99 cost of their paperback counterparts. Instead, I’ll be hitting the nearby used bookstores, and Amazon’s marketplace, for used paperback copies of any books that are priced so ridiculously for the Kindle version. So not only does the publisher lose the eBook sale, they lose out on the royalties from the paperback sale as well.
Now, the publishers were unhappy about pricing before the iBookstore and iPad were announced, but they couldn’t do much about it because Amazon had enough power and sales volume to pretty much set the price they felt was reasonable. But then along came Steve Jobs and Apple, and gave the publishers enough leverage to stand up to Amazon. Now, maybe I’m right and maybe I’m wrong, but competition is supposed to bring lower prices for consumers, not higher ones. So out of pure spite, I won’t be picking up an iPad to add to my shiny gadget collection.