# Follett's new book $19.99 for Kindle edition???



## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

Ken Follett's new book, "Fall of Giants" is available for pre-order.  It's priced higher than the hard cover.  And it says, "This price has been set by the Publisher", so I don't think it's coming down.  I know we've complained about this before, but $19.99?  That's outrageous.


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

I only see a hardcover on Amazon, no Kindle version...?


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

DArenson said:


> I only see a hardcover on Amazon, no Kindle version...?


http://www.amazon.com/Fall-of-Giants-ebook/dp/B003ZK58WM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1282231317&sr=1-2


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

Weird... that doesn't show up for me when I search.  I can see your link if I click it directly... but it does say "Pricing information not available."


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## davidhburton (Mar 11, 2010)

It could be because you're coming from a Canadian IP address. I get the same thing. 

As for 19.99, that's criminal. They're pricing themselves out of business.


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

Yeah might be a Canadian thing.

I'm a Ken Follett fan.  I've read a bunch of his books.  But I wouldn't buy a $19.99 Kindle book.


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

I'm so disappointed about the price.  
I will say that when I went to buy World Without End it was $12.99.  I waited a couple of weeks and surprisingly the price dropped to $8.99.  I doubt that the new book will drop anytime soon.  If I'm reading the information correct, two different publishers for his books.
deb


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

davidhburton said:


> It could be because you're coming from a Canadian IP address. I get the same thing.
> 
> As for 19.99, that's criminal. They're pricing themselves out of business.


I know I won't be buying it at that price. I balked at $12.99.


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## tubemonkey (Aug 10, 2010)

davidhburton said:



> They're pricing themselves out of business.


If only. The problem is, people will complain and then begrudgingly buy it anyway. For some reason they feel they can't do without it; and that's how publishers get away with this. The buying public enables them.


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## Thea J (Jul 7, 2010)

Wow. Just wow.


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

My Dad, a baker and great business owner, taught me a business principle when I was very young.  It you sell at a great price, you make up in volume what you lose in the lower price.  There are several people in this thread already who might have purchased this book but won't because of the $19.99 price.  If they sold say, 4 at $9.99, they would make $40, a lot more than none at $19.99!  I don't get why publishers don't get this.


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## LibbyD (Apr 28, 2009)

DD said:


> Ken Follett's new book, "Fall of Giants" is available for pre-order. It's priced higher than the hard cover. And it says, "This price has been set by the Publisher", so I don't think it's coming down. I know we've complained about this before, but $19.99? That's outrageous.


The Kindle edition is five cents more than the hardcover, which to my way of thinking is not so much outrageous as peculiar. The price will come down, but perhaps that won't happen soon enough to suit some people. I think it's impossible to predict what will happen with prices. The prices of some books I have on my wish list have been up and down and back and forth and all over the place while the prices of others have stayed the same for months.

I don't feel qualified to say if book prices are fair or unfair -- I can only say if I'm comfortable or uncomfortable with prices, and since I haven't set an arbitrary limit my process for determining comfort level is entirely subjective and is based on how interesting the book is to me and how eager I am to read it. For the most part, if I'm comfortable with the price and if I want to read the book fairly soon, I buy it. If I'm uncomfortable with the price I wait. I don't mind waiting because I have lots of good books waiting to be read and can find more with no difficulty at all.

Actually, in this case one might say that $19.99 is an entirely fair price since the hardcover is 1008 pages long, which makes it very nearly three times the length of an average novel. Looking at it in those terms $19.99 seems like a bargain!


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## bkworm8it (Nov 17, 2008)

I love Ken Follet but won't be spending that much for an ebook. Guess it will be to the library for me or wait a year or so to see what happens.


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## history_lover (Aug 9, 2010)

Penguin Publishing seem to be doing this for a lot of their ebooks. They're obviously trying to discourage people from buying ebooks - possibly because they're scared ebooks will cut out the middle man (publishing companies like themselves). You could buy the paperback/hardback version instead but then you'd just be giving into their tactics. So personally, I'm altogether boycotting any book with this kind of pricing.


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## KayakerNC (Oct 7, 2009)

history_lover said:


> Penguin Publishing seem to be doing this for a lot of their ebooks. They're obviously trying to discourage people from buying ebooks - possibly because they're scared ebooks will cut out the middle man (publishing companies like themselves). You could buy the paperback/hardback version instead but then you'd just be giving into their tactics. So personally, I'm altogether boycotting any book with this kind of pricing.


The Penguin Publishing price for the hardcover is actually $36.00!
Amazon's price is a 46% savings.
Evidently publishers think that locking in an ebook price will save the buggy whip industry.


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## blefever (Jul 29, 2010)

DD said:


> Ken Follett's new book, "Fall of Giants" is available for pre-order. It's priced higher than the hard cover. And it says, "This price has been set by the Publisher", so I don't think it's coming down. I know we've complained about this before, but $19.99? That's outrageous.


They are out of their everlovin minds if they think they're going to sell many copies at that price.


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## stargazer0725 (Feb 10, 2009)

What irritates me is the entire agency model.  Somebody really needs to look into anti-trust lawsuits, as the agency model does not fall within the bounds of free market.  Each and every new book is effectively a new monopoly for the publisher, as they have sole rights to reproducing and selling the material.  So, not only can you not buy this material from a competitive publisher, but now they are setting market prices at retailers.


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## Maria Romana (Jun 7, 2010)

DD said:


> My Dad, a baker and great business owner, taught me a business principle when I was very young. It you sell at a great price, you make up in volume what you lose in the lower price.


You're talking about the Law of Supply & Demand--the price at which a vendor maximizes his profit, which is somewhere between the highest price anyone will pay ($30?), and the price at which everyone with the slightest interest in the product will buy (ie, $.99). I would guess that the publisher knows that an ebook priced at or above the hard-cover price will preserve hard-cover sales. When he has exhausted his hard-cover market, he will bring out the soft-covers and drop the ebook price. Those of us who aren't willing to spring for the big bucks have to wait...

--Maria


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## padowd (Jan 14, 2010)

I do not have a problem paying that much for this book. Yes I would like to pay less but I think Ken Follett is a excellent writer and the book is very long so it is like getting two books. Also with all the free books I have got and the great deals I have got on most of my books having to pay $20.00 once in a while for a book I really want is not going to kill me. I have not paid over $9.99 for any book I have and very few at that price so I still feel like I get a good deal. I might feel different if all books were that high but that is not the case. Everyone is different so you just have to figure out what is best for your situation. Just my thoughts.


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## Maria Romana (Jun 7, 2010)

stargazer0725 said:


> What irritates me is the entire agency model. Somebody really needs to look into anti-trust lawsuits, as the agency model does not fall within the bounds of free market. Each and every new book is effectively a new monopoly for the publisher, as they have sole rights to reproducing and selling the material. So, not only can you not buy this material from a competitive publisher, but now they are setting market prices at retailers.


I don't think the actions of any one publisher can be considered anti-trust, as there are always competing products for any given book, but the "agency model", where all the big publishers are colluding on a price-fixing scheme for _all ebooks_, is, IMHO, clearly illegal behavior. There actually are some entities looking into this now (I believe the AG of Texas for one, but don't quote me on that), so hopefully, this little industry club will be broken up soon.

That said, I think the problem will resolve itself in another few years, when the bigger authors catch on to the fact that they no longer need NYC representation to bring their work to the masses. Then we will only have to worry about the online retailers colluding to fix prices by constantly under-cutting each other and then "price-matching" to the lowest offering...argh!

--Maria


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## stargazer0725 (Feb 10, 2009)

meromana said:


> I don't think the actions of any one publisher can be considered anti-trust, as there are always competing products for any given book,


As devil's advocate, I'd actually beg to differ in regards to this statement - books are not interchangable. To put it into perspective, let's deal specifically with a series of books that are extremely hot right now: The Southern Vampire Series, by Charlaine Harris.

The consumer spends a bunch of money and stocks up on books 1-9 of the series. When book 10 is released, naturally, the consumer wants to know what happens next to Sookie and her supernatural friends. Said consumer has to either purchase book 10 at the price locked in by the publisher on a national basis, or has to do without. There is not an equal substitution as no other author or publisher can provide a continuation of Sookie's story. With the agency model, there is no competitive pricing for the consumer for this one-of-a-kind product.

Granted, you can choose to purchase and read something else, but it's a moot point as now each of your other choices of books is now price-set by the publisher.


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

LibbyD said:


> The price will come down, but perhaps that won't happen soon enough to suit some people. I think it's impossible to predict what will happen with prices. The prices of some books I have on my wish list have been up and down and back and forth and all over the place while the prices of others have stayed the same for months.


I'm not so sure the price will come down when the listing says "This price is set by the publisher". I've seen ebooks released at a high price and then come down but they didn't have this disclaimer. I've been waiting for Nelson DeMille's "The Lion" to come down from $12.99 for months and it still hasn't. It also has the '...publisher...' disclaimer.


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## Raffeer (Nov 19, 2008)

This is one Follett fan that will refrain until reality sets in.


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## PaulGuy (Jul 9, 2009)

bkworm8it said:


> I love Ken Follet but won't be spending that much for an ebook. Guess it will be to the library for me or wait a year or so to see what happens.


What she said.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I can't help but notice $19.99 is more than 1/10 the cost of the new Kindle...the pricier one. 

It would be interesting if Amazon would put out some numbers on how well the over $10 bestsellers are doing on Kindle sales compared to the less than $10 ones. The stats might be surprising/disappointing to us readers but I'd like to know.

I'll wait on this one, if I ever read it. _World Without End_ will keep me busy for a while, not to mention the _Pillars_ miniseries.

N


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## history_lover (Aug 9, 2010)

DD said:


> I'm not so sure the price will come down when the listing says "This price is set by the publisher". I've seen ebooks released at a high price and then come down but they didn't have this disclaimer. I've been waiting for Nelson DeMille's "The Lion" to come down from $12.99 for months and it still hasn't. It also has the '...publisher...' disclaimer.


I agree, Penguin have jacked up the prices of several ebooks to $20 even on books which were released many years ago, along with the paperback. Example:
http://www.amazon.com/Time-and-Chance-ebook/dp/B002VXTB0O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1282240889&sr=1-1
This was released in 2002 and the paperback was released following year - ebook is still $19.99 (or rather, I should say the ebook price has gone UP since then because it was only recently that publishers were given the right to set their own prices). They clearly have no intention of lowering it.


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## askenase13 (Mar 1, 2009)

Penguin has been absolutely notorious for jacking up their ebook prices to unconscionable levels.  the Sharon Penman book is a perfect example- $9.00 more than the paperback!!  As for the Follett book, my guess is that it will be priced about $14.99 once released, and stay that way.  but, again, Penguin is awful.

So- two thinks-  wait wait wait and eventually the price will come down (maybe next April after the Agency pricing model expires/collapses).  Also, write to Follett and protest the high price.  (I know he doesn't set it but he can pressure the publisher.)

AND AVOID PENGUIN BOOKS!!


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

Do you think Penguin is trying to get us to buy the hardcover?  As far as I know, hardcovers are the real money makers for publishers.  Could it be Penguin is trying to discourage us from buying ebooks?

I think publishers are in a bind.  On one hand, they know the world is going ebooky.  They try to show enthusiasm for that.  They try to get with the times.  But on the other hand... they can't sell cheap ebooks.  Not when books cost so much to edit, design, and market.  A DTB only costs $2 or $3 to print, as far as I know--even a hardcover.  So a hardcover selling for $26 = lots of profit.  An ebook selling for $10 = big step back for publishers.  So yes... I wouldn't be surprised if publishers paid lip service to ebooks, but actually tried to discourage us from buying them.  What do you think?


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## stargazer0725 (Feb 10, 2009)

The issue is that the publishers are starting to get greedy, not that they are necessarily in a bind at the moment (although they very well could be in the near future if they continue with this pricing model).  With the other model, they were guaranteed a 50% of retail income stream on the books and ebook licenses that were ordered regardless of the retailer's sales price.  Now, they are taking 70% and fixing the prices so they can guarantee their return.

They are actually taking advantage of the popularity of ebooks right now to line their pockets whereever they can, however long they can...case in point the book from 2002 that was linked to previously.  They have obviously already gone through the initial hardcover run and are well into the paperback run.  They are counting on consumers being desperate enough to purchase an ebook selling for $19.99 while the paperback is on sale for $10.88 - either that or the consumer is "guided" to buy the cheaper ebook.  It's a way to either take advantage of those people who are heavily invested into the ereader technology, or to force consumers to snatch up their paperbacks from retailers (which eliminates a great deal of their "reserve on return" liability).  It's clearly a win-win situation for the publishing business at the moment...and really chaps my backside.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

I would love to read it but I will not pay $19.99. I do not want to buy the DTB so I will not be reading it for a while.


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

It's supposed to be the first in the Century Trilogy.  So, I guess I'll be a little behind.  I have trouble seeing the print even in hardback books.  The Kindle has been wonderful for me because of the adjustable fonts.  I willl not pay $19.99 for an ebook though.  I'll be patient.  I have plenty of books to read in the meantime.


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## PaulGuy (Jul 9, 2009)

Anne said:


> I would love to read it but I will not pay $19.99. I do not want to buy the DTB so I will not be reading it for a while.


I'm with Anne. 
I'm not into the "don't buy any book over $9.99" boycot stuff but Penquin is really getting on my nerves. 
And even though I'm a big Ken Follett fan I also will not pay $19.99 for the eBook nor will I purchase a DTB version.
Either the price comes down or I exercise other options such as library, used book sales next year, whatever, as long as it doesn't contribute to Penquin's bottom line.
I've got plenty of books to read in the meantime. I'm in no hurry.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

stargazer0725 said:


> The issue is that the publishers are starting to get greedy,


I'm going to go with _desperate_.


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## jackwestjr_author (Aug 19, 2010)

I would like to see someone show us the math.  I can venture a guess at the cost of printing a book; just simply printing it.  A printed book at Kinko's or at any of a variety of online print on demand services is about six or seven dollars.  If you are printing hundreds of thousands of them the price must come down significantly.  This is not the bulk of the cost that publisher hope to recover, however.  They spend most of their money on marketing.  Publishing is not big oil.  They make money but not hand over fist.  Promoting Ken Follet, who I love, must be easier than most, but the cost of advertising doesn't change for big names.  

Can anyone lay it out for us?


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## stampingpaperdoll (Oct 4, 2009)

I was watching the today show this morning and they were discussing new books coming out.  I was interested in the new Ken Follett, "Fall of Giants".  I went to Amazon to read reviews and decided to put it in my wish list.  I was astounded to see the price for the Kindle edition was $19.99.  The kindle edition does not come out until tomorrow, so I am wondering if this is incorrect and will be corrected tomorrow.  I would never pay that much for an ebook.  Has anyone had an experience like this?


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

I wouldn't buy a $19.99 ebook.  No way.  And I love Ken Follett.  I prefer to support indie authors, or publishers who offer sensible prices (under $10).


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

I have to say, $19.99 for an ebook is insane (in my opinion) and I won't be paying that price. 

I am thankful that I just bought a nook to use for library books and am already on my library waiting list for this one.. Depending on how many copies they get, I might actually have it tomorrow (I'm #2)

At the rate I'm going, the nook will have paid for itself in less than 6 months.


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## 13500 (Apr 22, 2010)

Wow--that's crazy. I would never pay that for an ebook.


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

There is another thread on this, that I also complained on....but I agree.  NO WAY!!  Nothing justifies that, sorry.  I'm hoping after it's released it drops, or I'll have to wait until it does to buy it.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

If there's two threads I can merge them. . .but I only find one . . . . someone have a link?


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## Monique (Jul 31, 2010)

Daniel Arenson said:


> Do you think Penguin is trying to get us to buy the hardcover? As far as I know, hardcovers are the real money makers for publishers. Could it be Penguin is trying to discourage us from buying ebooks?


In this case, yes. And, it's working to an extent. I know several people who will buy the hardcover of this because they can pass it around after they're done.


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## Maker (Jun 22, 2010)

Monique said:


> In this case, yes. And, it's working to an extent. I know several people who will buy the hardcover of this because they can pass it around after they're done.


I think I'll wait until it ends up on Paperbackswap.com.


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## Anne Victory (Jul 29, 2010)

Sorry.  Somebody's smoking crack and they can kiss my ass before I pay $20 for any fiction book, no matter how badly I want it.  That's regardless of format.  The fact that it's the eBook format is just an extra kick in the teeth.


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

I loved Pillars and World Without and I think a trilogy series going over more modern times from him will be EPIC. That said I was shocked and dismayed to see the price... but like others said this book is about 1,000 pages. Does anyone know what this book would be per page? I know that this is a digital medium and 1's and 0's don't really cost more in that sense but I am guessing they are pricing it realitive to the price of the paperback. So knowing it will take 2 or 3 times to read it as a normal book aren't you getting the same amount of book for your money?

I have a lot of books I want to read on my new K3 once I finish with my last Hardcover I bought before I got my Kindle so I may not get this right away and maybe the price will go down. But I don't think it's too much money considering the amount of content...


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Luvmy4brats said:


> I have to say, $19.99 for an ebook is insane (in my opinion) and I won't be paying that price.
> 
> I am thankful that I just bought a nook to use for library books and am already on my library waiting list for this one.. Depending on how many copies they get, I might actually have it tomorrow (I'm #2)
> 
> At the rate I'm going, the nook will have paid for itself in less than 6 months.


You are lucky my library only has the audio version


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

Anne said:


> You are lucky my library only has the audio version


Mine too. Since it's new, I expect them to get it in a few months.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

pidgeon92 said:


> Mine too. Since it's new, I expect them to get it in a few months.


At least I am not the only one. At least I figure out how to get Library books on my nook.


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## HeidiHall (Sep 5, 2010)

I wonder what will happen after the holidays ...

Almost everyone I've talked to has some form of e-reader on their wish-list and there is no shortage of excellent ebooks for sale at low prices to choose from. Needless to say, I won't be spending $19.99 for an ebook.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

If you have a nook you can get a sample of the book now.


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## Lisa M. (Jun 15, 2010)

I bought it. I love Ken Follett's historical novels. As someone said, this is such a huge book, it's like getting two.


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## Skydog (Mar 16, 2009)

Lisa M. said:


> I bought it. I love Ken Follett's historical novels. As someone said, this is such a huge book, it's like getting two.


To each their own. But your purchase supports the ludicrous pricing structure mandated by Penguin and other members of the Agency 5 Cartel. As long as they can find suckers, ahem, customers to pony up a large wad of cash, they will never submit to reasonable ebook pricing.

The fact that it "is such a huge book" is irrelevant. You have paid $20 for an ebook that cannot be shared, read on other devices (in theory) or sold.

If you purchased the hardcover, you have done exactly what Penguin was trying to accomplish - protect their hardcover sales and overhead.


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## Lisa M. (Jun 15, 2010)

Skydog said:


> To each their own. But your purchase supports the ludicrous pricing structure mandated by Penguin and other members of the Agency 5 Cartel. As long as they can find suckers, ahem, customers to pony up a large wad of cash, they will never submit to reasonable ebook pricing.


I don't consider myself a sucker.



Skydog said:


> The fact that it "is such a huge book" is irrelevant. You have paid $20 for an ebook that cannot be shared, read on other devices (in theory) or sold.


I don't share my books, and I only give away books that I found horrible and would never read again.



Skydog said:


> If you purchased the hardcover, you have done exactly what Penguin was trying to accomplish - protect their hardcover sales and overhead.


I have no interest in reading hardcover books any longer, however I have no problem with any publishing company wanting to protect their hardcover sales/overhead. There will be a market for hardcover books for quite some time.


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

Skydog said:


> The fact that it "is such a huge book" is irrelevant. You have paid $20 for an ebook that cannot be shared, read on other devices (in theory) or sold.


It's not irrelevant... It might be to you so that your arguement appears stronger then it is but it's a factor to consider. You are paying for someone else's work. How much work they put it in and how much product you recieve is important when deciding if the cost is worth it to you. I would look differently at a price of 20 dollars for a 300 page book then I would a 1,000 page book. I am getting more for the money, how is that irrelevant? Your mini-rant on ebooks is what's irrelevant because we aren't discussing the pro's and con's of the format... which is still wrong since my wife can read the book on her Kindle if I get it and we can read it on a computer as well. Eventually my two sons could also "share" the book too... but now i'm getting as off topic as you are.

You drew your line in the sand with the price YOU are willing to pay, coming here and insulting others for paying what they want with THEIR money is ridiculous. Why even say "to each their own" if you're going to insult them for their choices in the same paragraph?


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## Skydog (Mar 16, 2009)

Archer531 said:


> It's not irrelevant... It might be to you so that your arguement appears stronger then it is but it's a factor to consider. You are paying for someone else's work. How much work they put it in and how much product you recieve is important when deciding if the cost is worth it to you. I would look differently at a price of 20 dollars for a 300 page book then I would a 1,000 page book. I am getting more for the money, how is that irrelevant? Your mini-rant on ebooks is what's irrelevant because we aren't discussing the pro's and con's of the format... which is still wrong since my wife can read the book on her Kindle if I get it and we can read it on a computer as well. Eventually my two sons could also "share" the book too... but now i'm getting as off topic as you are.
> 
> You drew your line in the sand with the price YOU are willing to pay, coming here and insulting others for paying what they want with THEIR money is ridiculous. Why even say "to each their own" if you're going to insult them for their choices in the same paragraph?


This topic has been discussed many times ad nauseum.

_You_ completely missed the point.  I did not say that paying a particularly price for a _*paper*_ book was not justified. Many, probably most, are priced appropriately. Let the free market dictate. But one cannot compare equally the pricing of the paper vs. the ebook version (at least in this case) for obvious reasons I stated above. *That*_ is why the size is irrelevant. I don't care if the book is 100 pages or 1000 pages, pricing it at or more than a paper version is unreasonable.

In the eyes of the Agency 5 and their mandating pricing scheme, we are all suckers to them. I say again - to each their own.

What rant? This is merely a discussion. No requirement to participate._


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

Skydog said:


> This topic has been discussed many times ad nauseum.


Well... No requirement to participate.



> _You_ completely missed the point. I did not say that paying a particularly price for a _*paper*_ book was not justified. Many, probably most, are priced appropriately. Let the free market dictate. But one cannot compare equally the pricing of the paper vs. the ebook version (at least in this case) for obvious reasons I stated above. *That*_ is why the size is irrelevant. I don't care if the book is 100 pages or 1000 pages, pricing it at or more than a paper version is unreasonable. _


_

I did? Did you even read my post? You are buying what the author wrote, the content they write so you can read. You are reading the same content... That is what seems obvious to me. You aren't buying paper when you buy a book, you can 500 sheets for like 5 bucks. You are paying for what the author wrote, that content. So if it's an ebook or a paper book you are getting the same content.




In the eyes of the Agency 5 and their mandating pricing scheme, we are all suckers to them. I say again - to each their own.

Click to expand...

Weren't you the one saying the free market should dictate? So don't buy it, you just made your voice heard. What I objected to was for one insulting another user who was just saying she was happy to get the book and secondly because you were saying the size of the book shouldn't matter for the price but the content is twice as great as a normal book, the price is also twice as great. Seems simple..._


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## Lisa M. (Jun 15, 2010)

I very much enjoy reading others' opinions. I always learn new ways to look at an issue. Archer, you make such a very good point about purchasing the content, I completely agree with that. Wish I had thought of it!  

I'm trying to understand Skydog's POV, it's obviously important to him. But I think in this case it will have to be an agree to disagree topic. And I, like most people, respond better to discussions where there is respect shown. No one likes to be called a sucker.

I look at my purchase and balance it against my gratification. I could have spent $20 on a movie ticket and snacks, and while I would have enjoyed it, all I would have gotten would have been 2-ish hours, never to be repeated for that money spent. $20 would buy me a ticket to the local carnival and I could ride all the rides for the three days if I wanted to. But again, the money has a limit on the enjoyment received.

But $20 on a H-U-G-E book written by one of my most favorite authors?? Oh my. Hours of delicious, sink-into-a-story reading - and that's just the first time! I love to re-read books I love, so this $20 spent will be enjoyed for the rest of my life.

I don't begrudge a single penny.


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

Liked your post Lisa...   Please PM me or post a review of the book please. 


As an aside to the earlier comments regarding price and content. I looked up a book I thought my wife might like from Jenny McCarthy that came out today for $15 hardback and $13 Kindle pricing. The book is 272 pages... That would be my line in the sand because that 20 bucks for 1,000 pages is seeming like a damn good value. "From a certain point of view" -Kenobi


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Skydog said:


> To each their own. But your purchase supports the ludicrous pricing structure mandated by Penguin and other members of the Agency 5 Cartel. As long as they can find suckers, ahem, customers to pony up a large wad of cash, they will never submit to reasonable ebook pricing.
> 
> The fact that it "is such a huge book" is irrelevant. You have paid $20 for an ebook that cannot be shared, read on other devices (in theory) or sold.
> 
> If you purchased the hardcover, you have done exactly what Penguin was trying to accomplish - protect their hardcover sales and overhead.


I am not going to buy this book. If any who has a nook buys it you can at least share if with one person.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Lisa M. said:
 

> I bought it. I love Ken Follett's historical novels. As someone said, this is such a huge book, it's like getting two.


Lisa: Please let me know how you like the book.


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## Lisa M. (Jun 15, 2010)

I am loving it so far!!!


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## Pushka (Oct 30, 2009)

Skydog said:


> You have paid $20 for an ebook that cannot be shared, read on other devices (in theory) or sold.


I am sharing this book with five other kindlers? That makes it $4 each. And to buy the paperback here in Australia, if it was available, will be at least $35!


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Pushka said:


> I am sharing this book with five other kindlers? That makes it $4 each. And to buy the paperback here in Australia, if it was available, will be at least $35!


Are you all on the same account?


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## Pushka (Oct 30, 2009)

Anne said:


> Are you all on the same account?


Yes, we are but I would only lend books to those same people too.

Actually, I have never read any of his books before!  I started with Pillars of the Earth last night. Oh my, I am in for a treat!  These books are so expensive to buy as DTB in Australia so I just tended to avoid them and read something else.


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## wtmhs (Jul 17, 2010)

I think y'all should consider leaving a one-star review at Amazon.


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

wtmhs said:


> I think y'all should consider leaving a one-star review at Amazon.


Are you being serious?  You're reviewing the book and this is Kindle specific. That review shows for all versions of it and would ruin the ratings for the hardback and future paperpack versions. Those versions aren't close to overpriced... that's like those that give the Kindle a 1 star review because it came damaged from shipping, has nothing to do with the Kindle. Just my opinion of course...


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## Lisa M. (Jun 15, 2010)

Pushka said:


> Yes, we are but I would only lend books to those same people too.
> 
> Actually, I have never read any of his books before!  I started with Pillars of the Earth last night. Oh my, I am in for a treat!  These books are so expensive to buy as DTB in Australia so I just tended to avoid them and read something else.


I hope you enjoy Pillars of the Earth, I read it when it first came out and it has stayed a favorite ever since.



wtmhs said:


> I think y'all should consider leaving a one-star review at Amazon.


I think y'all like to stir the pot.


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## AnelaBelladonna (Apr 8, 2009)

wtmhs said:


> I think y'all should consider leaving a one-star review at Amazon.


I despise people who do that! Reviews should only be allowed as to the content of the book and not the price or any other agenda! If you don't want to pay for it, don't buy it!


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## PG4003 (Patricia) (Jan 30, 2010)

AnelaBelladonna said:


> I despise people who do that! Reviews should only be allowed as to the content of the book and not the price or any other agenda! If you don't want to pay for it, don't buy it!


I agree, bad reviews shouldn't be based on the price of the book, should only be for the content.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

AnelaBelladonna said:


> I despise people who do that! Reviews should only be allowed as to the content of the book and not the price or any other agenda! If you don't want to pay for it, don't buy it!


I agree you make a great point


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## Anne Victory (Jul 29, 2010)

AnelaBelladonna said:


> I despise people who do that! Reviews should only be allowed as to the content of the book and not the price or any other agenda! If you don't want to pay for it, don't buy it!


5 star review on that post. I seriously disagree with people who review badly for price or whatever and don't even have the product. Ick.


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

I was hoping it would drop after it actually came out. I'm not getting into any fights, but I personally think it's too much, and I personally refuse to pay it. I have 100 other books, I'll wait for it to drop. If it doesn't, I guess I'll hit the library and suffer through holding the stupid thing.



wtmhs said:


> I think y'all should consider leaving a one-star review at Amazon.


Please, please please do NOT do this!! It's not Ken Folletts fault that his publisher is charging too much. Reviews are meant for the book, not the price. Please don't, I get pretty angry when I see this stuff. If you don't want to buy it, choose - like me - to not buy it.


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

I don't agree with the practice of one-star reviews based on the Kindle price of a book, but it seems that there should be some way (other than not purchasing it) for readers to express their displeasure.  Many times I have been enthusiastic about a book, looked at the $14 price in the Kindle store, and decided not to buy it, whereas if it had been $9.99 it would have been an impulse buy.  I think the people posting 1-star reviews are trying to find an effective way to say something like that.

N


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Neekeebee said:


> I don't agree with the practice of one-star reviews based on the Kindle price of a book, but it seems that there should be some way (other than not purchasing it) for readers to express their displeasure.
> 
> N


I believe that, if you're on a books Kindle product page, you can scroll all the way down to leave feedback. You can say that you think the price is too high based on the paperback price or whatever. There's also a link just below the description specifications where you can report if you've found it cheaper elsewhere. . . . .between those two you should be able to get across the fact that you think it's over priced.


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## David McAfee (Apr 15, 2010)

I confess I have never read anything by Ken Follett.

At $19.99, I'm not likely to start any time soon, either.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Lisa M. said:


> I am loving it so far!!!


Thanks Lisa I cannot wait to read it.


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## Archer531 (Aug 13, 2010)

I will have to come here to read reviews because over 80 people have given this book a 1 star review despite having no intention of even buying it, not to mention actually reading a single page. *sigh*


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## PG4003 (Patricia) (Jan 30, 2010)

I'll give you an honest review since I'm about half way through my copy I got from the Library.  It's an excellent book.  I'm so sorry to hear it's getting all those bad reviews because of the price.  It's very good and really keeping my interest (didn't even turn on the TV last night).  I'll probably finish it over the weekend.  While I am enjoying it, I seriously doubt that I would have paid $19.99 for it.  Probably would wait for the price to drop.  I mean, come on, the new Stephen King book coming out in November isn't even that much.  (Stephen King is my fave, he's about the only one I'll pay more than $9.99 for!)


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Archer531 said:


> I will have to come here to read reviews because over 80 people have given this book a 1 star review despite having no intention of even buying it, not to mention actually reading a single page. *sigh*


The one star reviews are because of the price. I do not think one person who has left the one star review has read the book.  You are right it sad so many people have review the book without reading it.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

PG4003 (Patricia) said:


> I'll give you an honest review since I'm about half way through my copy I got from the Library. It's an excellent book. I'm so sorry to hear it's getting all those bad reviews because of the price. It's very good and really keeping my interest (didn't even turn on the TV last night). I'll probably finish it over the weekend. While I am enjoying it, I seriously doubt that I would have paid $19.99 for it. Probably would wait for the price to drop. I mean, come on, the new Stephen King book coming out in November isn't even that much. (Stephen King is my fave, he's about the only one I'll pay more than $9.99 for!)


Thanks for the review. The book sounds good. I cannot wait to read it. I hope I get my library card from the Philly library soon.


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## bkworm8it (Nov 17, 2008)

Yes, thanks for the review. I'll have to rent my copy from the library when I'm ready to read it, unless of course the price goes down before then


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

I started reading it just an hour or so ago. I've got a lot going on this weekend, so I think I'm going to have to break down and get the audiobook. At least they didn't do something stupid and make it 2 credits.


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## toj (Aug 2, 2010)

Luvmy4brats said:


> I started reading it just an hour or so ago. I've got a lot going on this weekend, so I think I'm going to have to break down and get the audiobook. At least they didn't do something stupid and make it 2 credits.


That is what I did. It is one credit and that still makes it $5 cheaper than the Kindle or hard cover copies right now.


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## akw4572 (Nov 3, 2008)

I was hoping the price would come down to $12.99 when it was released.  Since it didn't, I bought a book by a different author, that is kind of similar (Kane and Abel, by Archer).  I'm disappointed in Follett's book being so high priced.  I don't expect the price to come down soon now.  World Without End was priced at $17.99 until recently.  I don't give the new book a bad review, but I won't be buying it either.


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## Anne (Oct 29, 2008)

Luvmy4brats said:


> I started reading it just an hour or so ago. I've got a lot going on this weekend, so I think I'm going to have to break down and get the audiobook. At least they didn't do something stupid and make it 2 credits.


Where do you get your auto-books from


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Anne said:


> The one star reviews are because of the price. I do not think one person who has left the one star review has read the book.  You are right it sad so many people have review the book without reading it.


IMO, "reviewing" a book you haven't read is dishonest - you can't review something you haven't read. A book review should be about content, not price. Don't like the price? Tag it as overpriced. I'm downloading *Fall of Giants* from the library tomorrow - and while I rarely review books, I'll give it a honest review when I'm done.


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