Re: Are EBooks a Tower of Babel

From: "Robotech_Master" 
> 2010/2/26 joseph harris <[email protected]>
> 
>>
>> Perhaps the better question is 'Which formats do my readers use?'. As well
>> as 'Which formats do my books work best in?'. Epub was an attempt to make a
>> simplification, yet - as I understand it - it is only an envelope easing
>> delivery. PDF was invented for printing and ironically has become the most
>> frequently used format for ebooks - unless you count websites and blogs and
>> so on as ebooks too!
>>
> 
> I think the best question is, "Are my potential customers going to be able
> to figure out what kind of device/app they need to buy to read my formats,"
> and its inverse, "What formats will work with the device my customers
> already have?'
> 
> As I mentioned in my reply, the e-book reader market is a confusing morass
> of formats now. There are all these different e-book reading devices out
> there, but for the average person, who might be just barely
> computer-literate enough to check e-mail and update Twitter or Facebook,
> it's going to be very hard to figure out where to buy e-books for a
> particular gadget if it's not one of the "big four" (Kindle, Nook, Sony
> Reader, and soon iPad). Heck, they probably won't have an easy time even
> figuring out what all the formats MEAN, there are so many of them.
> 
> I mean, they have to find out what book and DRM formats their reader
> supports, then find out what stores sell them. For any given device they
> might want to buy. I think that a good part of the reason the Kindle has
> sold so well is that it makes things EASY for the average guy. Not only do
> they not have to worry about where to buy their books, but they don't even
> have to hook the Kindle up to a computer (unless they want to load books
> they bought elsewhere, but OTOH that's "advanced class" already). They can
> buy the books directly from the device itself and be reading within moments
> of deciding they want it.
> 
> -- 
> Chris Meadows aka         | WWW: http://www.terrania.us      | Somebody
> Robotech_Master           | ICQ: 5477383  AIM: RoboMastr     | help, I'm
> [email protected] | Skype, LJ-Gizmo: Robotech_Master | trapped in
> [email protected]        | Facebook: Robotech.Master        | a sig file!
> 

Chris,

The points you make in this and your previous post are very sound. 

While the attempts by the device makers or owners to tie consumers are there, the things to undermine them are also growing. Just as early drm wilted under the onslaught of breaking the restrictions, so the tying of devices to one merchant are changing. I think of Smashwords as a prime example v Kindle and others - though this is more to the advantage of the author/publisher at present.

This is a process that takes place in a lot of markets. The ball point pen started with each manufacturer using their own devices and refill mechanisms; today systems are interchangeable and price collapsed from false levels. Razors and blades, where a nice little earner was broken by the disposable, is another. Though this last has re-emerged to an extent with fancy systems.

Simplicity of use is an important feature for segments of any market, and that is a winner for the Kindle. This relates to the ease of use of Windows against Linux and against the cost of Macs. In fact, something that did surprise me, research shows that not only are users of the Kindle and similar dedicated readers among the better off, but it is that same wealthier group that leads the pressure for lower prices.

In many ways it is the variety of device and of system that is pro competitive even with all the problems. Yet this is only about delivery; and that may come to be affected more by the outcomes of various fights over the future of copyright, and the power of the big players on the net.

Amazon, B&N, Smiths and so on are still retailers, and the products are mostly available for different devices - including computers - from other places. The other side of the equation is the business models of authors and publishers. These are bringing into existence more players in the retail area that can offer better deals.

For the big outfits the erosions at these margins are what drive policies. But the competition that brings this about is not neat; indeed it is the very proliferation of places to find alternatives that breaks the monopolies, just as it did for the majority of drm.

Joseph

Joseph Harris - Debt Control Man
http://www.controlyourdebtcrisis.co.uk
Author: Control Your Debt Crisis on Your Own Terms
http://twitter.com/debtcontrolman 
SAQ - SAve the cheQue



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