Comments on: Amazon’s Cheapskate Marketing Plan

By: ElderLibrarian

ElderLibrarian — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 14:50:09 +0000

oily-There are some pretty savvy, educated elders out there who have no trouble with Nooks, Kindles, etc. But you are right about there being a money problem. I’ve mentioned before that I do get requests for my library to buy mass market paperbacks, so for some, spending for a Nook or Kindle is out of the question. Plus for Overdrive, the user needs a computer to download it first, if I remember rightly- yet another expense. I have a Kindle and can buy good nonfiction if I choose. I agree that serious researchers will be using printed works for a long time as the most used research tool with some datbases (based on printed sources, don’t forget!) or Internet sites used as well.

By: Skeptic

Skeptic — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 23:50:48 +0000

the primary format for popular fiction will be as it is now – mass market paperback.

By: Libraryman

Libraryman — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 20:09:32 +0000

@ Fat guy:
I thought the same thing about e-readers….until I tried them. It’s more than a fad. It may not replace all books, but it will be the primary format for popular fiction I suspect.

By: olly

olly — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 14:16:31 +0000

How do you commenters not detect the heavy sarcasm in the last paragraph and throughout the piece?

This is an astute analysis. The only real benefit for libraries is, as the AL observed, further feeding the young & middle-aged, middle class leisure reading market. It is irrelevant to researchers, (most) elderly people, and poor patrons, and people who don’t have or don’t use ereaders.

The benefit for Amazon is, as the AL also observed, is expanding their market and increasing potential for sales. Most e-reader services are about only sales, & Amazon et al. will release only what sells–cf. libraries, who (should) collect primarily based on what will be useful in pursuing education. IOW the two do not really have corresponding purposes.

Even if the netflix model may expand the list of titles ereader manufacturers provide access to, the choices they make will still be based on market analysis, not collecting for the purposes of education.

By: Fat Guy

Fat Guy — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 01:46:13 +0000

I dunno…this whole scenario presumes there is no ceiling on the popularity or impact of e-reading, a presumption I don’t think has much support. E-readers seem like all the rage now, but are really only appealing to a niche market of experimenting semi-techies. It’s still a different experience of reading than a book, and I’m failing to see how they can close the gap with print. They represent an alternative to print books, but as of yet, only that–an alternative. It’s still hard, at least for me, to see how they replace print. I wouldn’t start leading the bonfires yet, AL.

By: Rima

Rima — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 23:08:35 +0000

I believe “Everyone wins” was intended as sarcasm – or snark, as the syllabically-challenged say.

By: Spekkio

Spekkio — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:11:36 +0000

“…but Overdrive seems to be available only at public libraries….”

Not so.

http://pitt.lib.overdrive.com/
(Just as one example.)

By: bob

bob — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 13:22:02 +0000

I understand Amazon taking this route initially for the market research, but why would they even bother with a Netflix like service in the end?

It’s simple: you can check out any book from Amazon to your Kindle, one at a time. If you end up buying it you get a discount. Simple. Amazon, through it’s subsidized 3G, becomes the one stop shop for popular reading.

The only need for a Netflix like plan will be for people who need more than one book at a time. People like those who currently use University libraries…

By: Jean Costello

Jean Costello — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 11:31:46 +0000

A key aspect of this development is that libraries were totally out of the loop. It’s another by-product of our fragmented national library ecosystem — even if Amazon had been inclined to engage the library community, what person or organization could they have contacted for a productive dialogue? Does this absence of strong library leadership and organization make OverDrive the defacto library representative in the digital content realm?

By: Michael Henry Starks

Michael Henry Starks — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 10:50:51 +0000

“Everyone wins?” How do libraries win in that scenario?