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HarperCollins exec on e-books and what her mama told her
January 7, 2007 | 8:14 am
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By David Rothman
Big publishers could grow their e-book profits if they dropped prices and took other actions without worrying so much about their hefty investments in pulped-wood media. But it’s not as if HarperCollins and the other giants lack digital-reading fans within the companies. Here’s what Ann Allessi, publisher at HarperMedia, told DearAuthor during an interview on HarperCollins’ e-book initiatives:
There is tons of room to grow! As the reading devices improve and word gets out that you don’t always have to lug around those heavy books (with a type size that may not be convenient for you), our sales will only go up. I’ll tell you a funny story: when I was growing up, my parents moved around a bit, in the US and abroad. When I was ready to leave for college my mother, who read a book a day for her entire life, gave me one piece of advice: “Don’t buy hardcovers. They are too heavy to move.” Imagine if the Sony e-Reader had been available to her! She would have loved it.
In a question for Ann Allessi, DA noted that Simon & Schuster “sells their books for 40% off and other publishers don’t offer any discount. Harper Collins falls in the middle with a 20% discount. Is that the pricing we will see in the future or do you think that HC will lower the price?”
“Right now,” came the response, “we’re not inclined to adjust our pricing. It is, of course, something that we keep a close eye on.”
On advance releases of e-books, before p-books: “It’s very likely that we will continue experiment with an e-book releases in advance of the print book. Our initial efforts have been fun to publish and well received.”
On how many books Harpers will digitize: “We’re working very hard to make all Harper books, both frontlist and backlist, available as e-books.”
On who decides if a book goes digital: “Many people decide if a book will be published as an e-book: the publisher, the author, and the author’s representatives. If a reader wants a book published as an e-book, I think the best thing to do is to contact that author and/or author’s agent.”
On formats: “We’re committed to all formats. I don’t see a movement toward a unified format or DRM right now.”
On the reason for DRM: “I think it is piracy.”
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Comments:
Interesting – she “thinks” DRM is because of piracy, which doesn’t know. I contend they never will unless they test DRM/nonDRM with authors that sell at similar rates to determine if DRM prevents piracy or a wider audience.
Well, Jim, let’s see what studies other folks can cite—if they exist. I can recall claims that file sharing helps small-fry more than the big boys, but that’s not quite the same thing. I’d welcome feedback from readers and publishers alike. My personal belief is that DRM is an audience-reducer. David
I’m more disappointed that they don’t seem to see the need to lower prices of e-books a lot more. In my opinion, hardback-comparable pricing is more of an audience-reducer than DRM.