Q: On the Amazon Kindle discussion group, Gary Anderson says: "Be aware that Amazon is going to start charging for using the Web browser on the Kindle."
A: It's an interesting and valid question, Gary -- sufficiently interesting that as I write this #818 on the Kindle Books bestseller list is an article entitled "The Amazon Kindle Basic Web Wireless Service: Why It Is a Revolutionary Feature, and Why Amazon Should Keep It Free or Cheap (Kindle Edition)," which is actually a chapter excerpted from my forthcoming book on the Kindle. The real question, I think, is whether it will make sense economically in the classic Amazon "customer experience"-driven business model for Amazon to start charging for the wireless web. In the article I argue that it would make little sense and would involve a serious departure for Amazon to start charging anything more than a nominal charge of, say, $2.99 a month for the wireless connectivity.
Two other points worth mentioning, I think:
1) If it is important to people, I hope they will make a point of communicating to Amazon their hope, or insistence, or whatever they want to communicate, that the service be kept free. If your post or my article help people to frame the dialogue, that's fine.
2) I recommend that people look at the fairly broad and unqualified statement implicit in the 5th paragraph of the letter from Jeff Bezos which is linked in the left sidebar column of the Kindle Store page: "We chose the same wireless technology used in advanced cell phones, so you never need to locate a Wi-Fi hotspot. But unlike cell phones, there are no monthly wireless bills, no service or data plans, and no yearly contracts."
That is Jeff speaking about his vision for the Kindle, and although it would be possible to split hairs and say, well, he wasn't specific about using the wireless for browsing the web, etc., etc., I think that would be missing his point. And call me Pollyanna, but I prefer to believe JeffSpeak than AmazonLawyerSpeak, which I believe is what animates (or fails to animate) the Terms & Conditions.
Speak up, Kindlers! You have nothing to lose but your connectivity!
Windwalker
indieKindle.blogspot.com
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Setting prices for Kindle editions
Q: Hi Steve,
Do you have any thoughts about pricing?
My inclination would be to charge a low price, hoping to attract more people--I'd rather make $5 from five people reading it, than one.
A: I've been doing a bit of experimenting with price. As I work on 2 books about the Kindle, I am excerpting individual chapters as "articles" and posting them in a price range between $1.99 and $3.99. I've also posted my old bookselling book and it has had sales both at $7.95 and at lower prices.
There are several things to keep in mind:
* When their dead-tree editions are only available in hardcover, the vast majority of books are going to be priced at $9.99. You don't have to go much lower than that to make your price seem a bargain.
* That being said, I notice that the Pullman trilogy is selling pretty well at $3.19 per Kindle book -- this compares with $13.50 (or $4.50 each) for a boxed set in the mass market paperback edition. This would tell me that a good price for otherwise paperback fiction is $2.99 to $5.99.
* There is a weird spectrum of consumer behavior that one deals with here. Pricing too low may cause some customers to question worth of a book.
* Once somebody has a Kindle, its says 2 things about them. One, they love to read. Two, they have some disposable income if they have already forked over $399! These people probably won't decide not to buy your book because it is priced at $9.99 instead of $4.99.
* Amazon sales rankings will determine a lot about how visible a book is in the Kindle store and on Amazon in general. The sales rankings are based on "# units sold" rather than "dollars sold," so this argues for getting as many sales as possible early on to help your titles climb that ladder and increase invisibility, which in turn leads to more sales.
* Because the universe of Kindles is likely to grow arithmetically over the next few years, it is valuable to be "in on the ground floor." It is probably realistic to extrapolate that if you can sell 5 copies of something this month, you would be likely to sell 50 12 months from now and 100 24 months from now -- all other things being equal, as if they ever were.
I guess where I come down, given all of this, is that it usually makes sense to price book length fiction around $3.99 to $4.99 if it is otherwise available in paperback, and $7.99 to $9.99 if it is only yet in hardcover.
Hope this helps.
Do you have any thoughts about pricing?
My inclination would be to charge a low price, hoping to attract more people--I'd rather make $5 from five people reading it, than one.
A: I've been doing a bit of experimenting with price. As I work on 2 books about the Kindle, I am excerpting individual chapters as "articles" and posting them in a price range between $1.99 and $3.99. I've also posted my old bookselling book and it has had sales both at $7.95 and at lower prices.
There are several things to keep in mind:
* When their dead-tree editions are only available in hardcover, the vast majority of books are going to be priced at $9.99. You don't have to go much lower than that to make your price seem a bargain.
* That being said, I notice that the Pullman trilogy is selling pretty well at $3.19 per Kindle book -- this compares with $13.50 (or $4.50 each) for a boxed set in the mass market paperback edition. This would tell me that a good price for otherwise paperback fiction is $2.99 to $5.99.
* There is a weird spectrum of consumer behavior that one deals with here. Pricing too low may cause some customers to question worth of a book.
* Once somebody has a Kindle, its says 2 things about them. One, they love to read. Two, they have some disposable income if they have already forked over $399! These people probably won't decide not to buy your book because it is priced at $9.99 instead of $4.99.
* Amazon sales rankings will determine a lot about how visible a book is in the Kindle store and on Amazon in general. The sales rankings are based on "# units sold" rather than "dollars sold," so this argues for getting as many sales as possible early on to help your titles climb that ladder and increase invisibility, which in turn leads to more sales.
* Because the universe of Kindles is likely to grow arithmetically over the next few years, it is valuable to be "in on the ground floor." It is probably realistic to extrapolate that if you can sell 5 copies of something this month, you would be likely to sell 50 12 months from now and 100 24 months from now -- all other things being equal, as if they ever were.
I guess where I come down, given all of this, is that it usually makes sense to price book length fiction around $3.99 to $4.99 if it is otherwise available in paperback, and $7.99 to $9.99 if it is only yet in hardcover.
Hope this helps.
Copyrights & Kindle Publishing: Can I publish on Kindle if I have published an iUniverse edition?
Q: Do you have any knowledge of contracts with places like iUniverse? Wouldn't they have a problem with my doing this since they sell electronic version of my books? (Not that anyone has ever bought one)
I would be all for doing this, but I'm wondering about them. I'll look at my contracts. It's further complicated (I think) by the fact that one of my titles was reissued as part of their Star program, and they have more rights to that somehow.
I am so far out of my area of knowledge with this kind of thing. My impulse is to ask them but I don't want to be a naive fool.
A: The iUniverse FAQ page makes it very clear that you own the rights. There's no qualifier that says "However, in the Star program...."
Here's what it says:
Contracts & Agreements
Do I own the rights to my book or do you, the publisher?
The author retains the rights to all of his or her book. By utilizing iUniverse's services, you are simply granting us a non-exclusive license to publish and distribute the work for you.
I'm not a lawyer, but their lawyers would shoot them if they stated things so baldly and it were only true under certain conditions.
I think you are 100% good to go!
I would be all for doing this, but I'm wondering about them. I'll look at my contracts. It's further complicated (I think) by the fact that one of my titles was reissued as part of their Star program, and they have more rights to that somehow.
I am so far out of my area of knowledge with this kind of thing. My impulse is to ask them but I don't want to be a naive fool.
A: The iUniverse FAQ page makes it very clear that you own the rights. There's no qualifier that says "However, in the Star program...."
Here's what it says:
Contracts & Agreements
Do I own the rights to my book or do you, the publisher?
The author retains the rights to all of his or her book. By utilizing iUniverse's services, you are simply granting us a non-exclusive license to publish and distribute the work for you.
I'm not a lawyer, but their lawyers would shoot them if they stated things so baldly and it were only true under certain conditions.
I think you are 100% good to go!
Making changes in your Kindle book description on the DTP
Q: how does one make changes to the book description? is it possible? do you have to delete and start all over again?
A: It's very easy to make changes in the book description, and they should show up in a day or two. Just go to "My Shelf" after signing in to your account on the Digital Text Platform. You will see a listing of your "Live" titles. Click on the little "+" button to the left of the title you wish to change, and the publishing details for that title will come up on your screen. (Don't click on the "Live" link; that would take you to the detail page for the title in the Amazon catalog).
When the "Enter Product Details" screen appears, you will see everything you have already posted for the title. You can change the Description or any of these details, as well as price, title, image and even the text or innards of the ebook. Once you make a change, click on the "Save Entries" button, then click on the "Publish" button. Your changes should be live within 12 to 24 hours; until then the pre-change version of your material will continue to be displayed. Be sure of your change before you click on "Publish", because once you do that the details will be in limbo for 12 to 24 hours and you will not be able to make further changes.
Hope this helps,
Windwalker
indiekindle.blogspot.com
http://forums.digitaltextplatform.com/dtpforums/thread.jspa?threadID=508
A: It's very easy to make changes in the book description, and they should show up in a day or two. Just go to "My Shelf" after signing in to your account on the Digital Text Platform. You will see a listing of your "Live" titles. Click on the little "+" button to the left of the title you wish to change, and the publishing details for that title will come up on your screen. (Don't click on the "Live" link; that would take you to the detail page for the title in the Amazon catalog).
When the "Enter Product Details" screen appears, you will see everything you have already posted for the title. You can change the Description or any of these details, as well as price, title, image and even the text or innards of the ebook. Once you make a change, click on the "Save Entries" button, then click on the "Publish" button. Your changes should be live within 12 to 24 hours; until then the pre-change version of your material will continue to be displayed. Be sure of your change before you click on "Publish", because once you do that the details will be in limbo for 12 to 24 hours and you will not be able to make further changes.
Hope this helps,
Windwalker
indiekindle.blogspot.com
http://forums.digitaltextplatform.com/dtpforums/thread.jspa?threadID=508
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