Nov 13 2012
Tuesday News: New retail revenue models for publishing
Image via Big Stock Photo
Bookboard tries Netflix-like model for kids’ ebooks – Bookboard (not to be confused with Books on Board like I initially did upon reading this story) is a new digital retailer designed to deliver Netflix like access to children’s books. It is currently free during the public beta, but the commercial launch will occur somewhere in 2013 with monthly subscription fees between $5 and $10 per month. Publishers receive royalties based on number of pages read and “how well their content does within our platform,” Pegg said. (The publishers are not paid during the free beta period.) One of the participating publishers I spoke with also said that Bookboard is paying them an advance, though the company would not comment on that. It appears that different publishers may have different licensing agreements and as Bookboard tries to get larger children’s publishers to sign up it may have to pay them more.” paidContent
THE ART OF THE NOVELLA SUBSCRIPTION SERIES – Melville House is offering a limited subscription service for both print and digital readers. The digital subscription is $8.99 per month and the print is $16.99 per month. The subscription qualifies you for 2 novellas a month chosen by Melville House. Seems pricey to me, but this is a literary fiction house so maybe those prices are in line with the customer expectations. Melville House Books
Over a Third of eReaders Are Used Just Once Before Being Set Aside – According to a customer survey undertaken by CouponCodes4um.com, about 1/3 of readers who have a digital device only use it once. The majority of the correspondents cite busyness as the cause of the ereader’s demise but nearly a quarter prefer their print books over a digital reader. The Digital Reader
50 Shades of Divorce: Wife ‘inspired’ by erotic book says husband failed to meet her expectations – I don’t know who I dislike more in this story. The sum of the story is that a wife who is unhappy with her sex life is suing for divorce. The wife’s solicitor claims that the wife brought in ideas from the book into the bedroom and the husband wasn’t interested. Ergo, Fifty Shades is ushering in women with crazy bedroom ideas who will leave their husbands if they aren’t interested in a little BDSM with a spatula. Daily Mail Online
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Nov 13, 2012 @ 07:28:37
50 Shades of Divorce. It sounds like sex was the least of their problems.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 08:08:10
Well, my feelings on 50 Shades aside: good for her. She had certain sexual desires (and it sounds like her husband’s blaming them all on the book, but I doubt that’s actually the case), brought them up, and then, when she couldn’t get them fulfilled while remaining in her marriage, took steps to get out. (The husband here sounds jerktastic, too.) Sexual compatibility is important in relationships, and I’m glad she recognized that instead of either having affairs or remaining miserable.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 08:17:29
@Isabel C.:
I agree with you that the woman handled it better than having an affair as far as how she got out, but I’d argue that she was also a little selfish in her approach. Bedroom activites are something I believe a couple should discuss before the “urges” hit so they can come to an agreement. If, during their discussion, they agree that things aren’t working out in that department and it’s time to move on, that’s okay (in my mind) because it was a joint decision. I just don’t see how this woman made an effort. Also, if the marriage was that bad that there was even a chance a book could sway one participant, I think they have problems beyond the book.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 08:42:47
@Jess: That last, I absolutely agree with.
To me, it sounds like she tried a bunch of things and he wasn’t interested at all, at which point…well, you can make yourself miserable for an abstract ideal of “commitment,” you can cheat, or you can leave. (Or demand an open arrangement, but if the other person isn’t interested there, you’re back to the original three choices.) And yeah, ideally it should be a joint decision–like any breakup–but if the other person’s stance is that they don’t want the relationship to end but aren’t willing to do the things that will make you happy to stay, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.
Likewise, ideally everyone’s definitely discussed the whole subject of preferences and limits and libido, but a) those things do change over time, and people become aware of needs or desires they weren’t before, and b) as long as society insists that sex isn’t that important and people should be able to live without sexual fulfillment as long as blah blah soul mates blah blah, a lot of people won’t manage to have those discussions until things get desperate to the point of being already broken, in many cases. We’re getting better about that latter one, thank God.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 10:55:46
I’m not surprised that many ereaders don’t get used after purchase, but I am surprised by the 1/3 figure. I know several people who are, essentially, non-readers but they’ve bought ereaders simply because they’re gadget-heads and don’t want to miss out on the latest thing. Most readers seem to read even more when they get ereaders but, TBH, I don’t think a new device will have much effect on someone who typically reads one or two books a year. For them, an ereader is probably more trouble than it’s worth and gets set aside.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 11:38:35
@Susan:
One interesting personal thing I’ve discovered is that I will love whatever e-reader I buy for a while, but when I can buy something that does everything I want much easier than that e-reader, I push the e-reader aside. I loved my Sony e-reader, but when it became frustrating to load books to it and sometimes I’d lose all my old books when putting one new book on, I said “Screw it!” and looked for something new. Now I’m in love with my Lenovo tablet because I can download books from most e-book websites and it’s a much more automatic downloading deal.
Given my own experience, I thought of a recommendation for places that have their own store-dedicated tablets. Expand, expland, expand. If people are having a diffcult time downloading their books from your store, why not/em>allow them to purchase elsewhere but still use your table? If they like the compromise, you still may have a long-term customer even if they’re not buying your e-books. This seems so simplistic to me, and I’m surprised more professional people haven’t seriously considered it.
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Nov 13, 2012 @ 18:27:20
@Isabel C:
I agree that couples who are sexually incompatible are probably better off moving on. Note, however, that this argument works both ways. When the husband wants to try something that the wife does not feel comfortable about (which in the real world is probably more likely) he is often dismissed as a selfish jerk for walking away from the relationship over this issue.
Nov 13, 2012 @ 19:24:45
@Chris: Yeah, and I object to that too.
One of the better and more revelatory moments of my life was realizing that there’s no such thing as “trying hard enough” in a relationship. You should try and be considerate of the other person’s feelings, and certainly kids/chronic illness/blah blah blah change things, but if you’re not happy and you want to leave? Leave. There’s not some minimum amount of effort you have to put in–it’s nice to try talking or counseling or whatever, but if you know you’ll be happier out of the relationship, that’s fine too–and you don’t need a “good reason” or a note from your doctor or your mom. Relationships aren’t math class.
And with that, I think I’ve posted enough in this thread. ;)
Nov 14, 2012 @ 13:32:24
You know – based only upon the given information – that wife has a problem. If she was so bored with her husband…she should have tried couples counseling. Not a freaking fiction book and DT for damn that if she thinks a pair of sexy undies would do it. You can not go to your SO and say, “You’re boring! Look at what this sexy [fictional] millionaire did in the sack” and expect said SO to not get an attitude and/or be offended.