NY Times article on cost of ebooks may not be accurate

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By Paul Biba

That’s what this article in Shelf Awareness is saying:

In a story called “Math of Publishing Meets the E-Book,” the New York Times tries to answer the question of “just how much does it actually cost to produce a printed book versus a digital one.”

The issue is a big one, considering that most consumers think e-books should be priced much lower than printed books and most large publishers say they can’t operate businesses at e-book prices many consumers expect. Unfortunately the first step of the story’s example–a hardcover priced at $26–seemed like a misstep. For that book, the Times wrote, “The bookseller will generally pay the publisher $13.” Of course, this may apply to wholesalers and some large retail accounts, but most booksellers only dream of a 50% discount on the average hardcover. As a result of positing a high retail discount, the article leaves the hypothetical publisher of its typical hardcover with lower gross profit than would actually be the case.

So while the example is illustrative for one type of title to one type of customer, it begs even more questions.

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