Amazon Now Discounting HarperCollins EBooks 136
Nate the greatest writes "Late last week three publishers and the Department of Justice finalized an agreement to settle the claims that the publishers conspired to raise ebook prices. One of the terms of the agreement was that publishers were going to have to allow ebook retailers like Amazon to set the price of ebooks. Today it looks like the new prices have gone into effect. Amazon, B&N, and a small indie ebookstore called BooksonBoard are all offering HarperCollins ebooks at a discount. B&N and Amazon seem to be using the same price book, while BoB is having a 24% off sale."
Re:Good for Whom? (Score:5, Insightful)
You mean the fat middlemen publishers who live off the writers and provide little value to the consumer? Once publishing is all digital and instant they might have to get a real job! As far as limiting choice that is pure FUD, anyone with a computer could write a novel and have it published. Unlike the old days of publisher monopolies.
Re:Good for Whom? (Score:3, Insightful)
You clearly have never read an unedited manuscript. If you had, you'd never suggest anyone with a computer writing a novel and having it published.
Re:Good for Whom? (Score:4, Insightful)
" Capitalism is to economics as natural selection is to Darwinism.
Would you contend that people should do something un-natural?"
The publisher is not getting smaller profits. What Amazon and the rest are doing are doing are selling books below the cost that publishers are charging them to distribute the book. Amazon is taking a loss on the ebook sell to encourage sales of the Kindle and to run other booksellers out of business. What do you think is going to happen when Amazon gets its monopoly status back?
Re:Good for Whom? (Score:4, Insightful)
Capitalism is to economics as natural selection is to Darwinism.
And regulation is to capitalism as medicine is to natural selection.
Would you contend that people should do something un-natural?
Use medicine to prolong life? Absolutely.