Looking Like A Fool With Your Foot In Your Mouth
In the wake of the Amazon-Macmillan war, I came to one inescapable conclusion: trust no one.
I heard so many varying reports on how royalties are paid, who did what to whom and the legal variables I ended up with a headache. As a result, I clearly stated some things (I think mainly in comments on Crimespace) that are probably incorrect.
I say probably, because everyone seems more invested in playing PR games than in the truth.
Scalzi has the post that wraps it up that’s probably the only must-read. Unless, of course, you’re on Amazon’s side. Then you won’t like it.
I do think this was a very dangerous game of chicken that Amazon and Macmillan played. I also think anyone who says this is about protecting consumers or about protecting authors is probably smoking something that’s probably illegal. This is about control, and I don’t think it panned out well for anyone in the end.
The one thing I’m completely willing to stand behind is my belief that if the iPad hadn’t launched last week, this probably wouldn’t have happened, and if it had Macmillan would have lost.
As an author, I have to take a dispassionate view of the selling side of the business. My books are carried at WalMart stores in Canada, at the very least, and major chains on both sides of the border. I will not fault consumers for where they decide to purchase their reading material, and I do understand the convenience of Amazon. When I lived in rural Alberta it was incredibly convenient, and less expensive, which enabled me to buy more books.
However, I fear for the mega-sellers and what they’re doing to Independents, and what they could do to domestic publishing. As an author, I’m glad my books are carried by multiple venues and wherever readers purchase them, I’m just glad they did.
As a reader, I’ll be keeping my primary purchasing in brick and mortar stores, and I won’t be getting an e-reader any time soon. Unless it’s an iPad. Which looks cool.
February 1st, 2010 at 1:35 pm
Well said, Sandra — all of it.
My concern isn’t about the price wars, or lack of them, so much as that awful, niggling feeling that might be familiar to those (like me) old enough to remember the VHS/BETA fiasco.
What *I* want — sooner rather than later — is some sort of FINAL (which in our times might mean it lives only a week. ) establishment of a universal ebook format that EVERYBODY’s reader accept without a whole lot of nuisance value.
Give us that — then we can dicker over pricing.
February 1st, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Gordon, I’m with you. I don’t think anyone should be restricted to one format. What happened to the free market?
February 2nd, 2010 at 1:02 pm
I was worse than you ever thought of being on my blogs. I just said what I thought, laid out what I thought made sense, and waiting for people to line up to correct me. Sometimes the best way to learn is to rile people up.
Plus, you were still pretty much right, at least in a reasonably functioning universe. Let’s face it, Amazon (large booksellers in general) and Macmillan (large publishers in general) are never going to give us the straight scoop on any of this; we’ll always be dealing from a position of some ignorance.
BTW, you and Gordon have it exactly right. What needs to be done is to get to a standard so these rights aren’t subject to eternal squabbling.
February 3rd, 2010 at 10:59 pm
Has there BEEN an end to this yet? My books still aren’t available on Amazon and I’m mighty pissed about it.
February 3rd, 2010 at 11:00 pm
Well, no Rob, it isn’t over. I mean, Amazon has said it will bend to Macmillan, but they still haven’t done so. Interesting that Amazon is so willing to lose money, isn’t it?
February 7th, 2010 at 10:46 am
I’m not sure I get Macmillan at all. But at least Amazon has caved a bit. The hard copy editions are back. Hopefully the Kindle stuff will soon follow.
Publishers had better get smart very fast and embrace the idea of ebooks with a different mindset than they’re used to. Otherwise, they’ll wind up going the way of the record companies — alienating the public and driving a good portion of them to find alternate sources for reading material. And the book business can hardly use that right now.
February 7th, 2010 at 10:49 am
I realize the above implies I’m somehow siding with Amazon on this. I’m not. I’m siding with the authors and the public. I think Amazon made a questionable move, but I think everyone needs to sit down and think this all through before they start pulling triggers.
February 7th, 2010 at 11:38 am
I understand what you’re saying Rob. It’s not so much that I’m pro Macmillan as extremely unhappy with Amazon. As a retailer, they have the right to decide what they want to stock, I suppose, but a dispute over kindle pricing shouldn’t extend to pulling hardcovers and paperbacks when that isn’t part of the issue. That’s just dirty, and shows a complete lack of consideration for the consumers.
I also think that pulling so many titles from kindle shows a lack of respect for readers. They want people to buy their kindles, and many will weigh the pros and cons and decide to because of the increasing volume of books available. Suddenly yanking hundreds, if not thousands of titles could really upset someone who just dropped a couple hundred on the kindle and now has to get those titles elsewhere.
There’s going to have to be some flexibility on everyone’s part moving forward, to make the best decisions for the long-term viability of the publishing industry.
As for the music industry, Nick Mamatas has a post up about the differences between music and publishing that’s well worth checking out:
http://nihilistic-kid.livejournal.com/1431081.html