The E-Sylum:  Volume 7, Number 29, July 18, 2004, Article 30

PUBLISHERS BATTLE AGAINST USED BOOKS ONLINE

  The New York Times this week featured an article about
  the problems used book sales on the Internet are causing
  publishers.

  "Publishers, particularly textbook publishers, have long
  countered used-book sales by churning out new editions
  every couple of years. But the Web, particularly sites like
  Amazon and eBay, have given millions of consumers an
  easy way to find cheap books - often for under $1 -
  without paying royalty fees to publishers or authors.

  Mass-market publishers are not certain the used-book
  phenomenon is a problem worth addressing, but others in
  the industry have already made up their minds.

  "We think it's not good for the industry and it has an effect,
  but we can't measure it," said Paul Aiken, executive director
  of the Authors Guild, a trade group. "There has always been
  used-book sales, but it's always been a background noise
  sort of thing. Now it's right there next to the new book on
  Amazon."

  "Amazon has listed used books alongside new books since
  late 2000. But analysts and industry executives said the
  momentum among consumers and newly minted used-book
  sellers was just now approaching the point of biting into
  new-book sales.

  "We've not been able to pinpoint a definite effect, but my
  gut is that absolutely there's an effect," said Dominique
  Raccah, chief executive of Sourcebooks Inc. of Naperville,
  Ill., a publisher of both fiction and nonfiction titles. "And it
  concerns me that we're not formalizing a reasonable,
  proactive response."

  "This is not a new phenomenon," said Albert N. Greco, a
  professor at Fordham University's graduate school of
  business administration. "But now it's different. The computer
  and the Internet have revolutionized things."

  Furthermore, Mr. Greco said, there is no stigma attached to
  buying used books. "It's not like buying a used pair of shoes.
  And the prices are very reasonable," he said.

  To read the full article, see: Full Story

  Wayne Homren, Editor

	coinbooks.org Web

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