Comments on: How Digital Audiobooks in Libraries Affect Retail Sales

By: Ben

Ben — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 21:40:05 +0000

Thanks John Jointer. Audio Pod is AMAZING!!! This is what audiobooks are supposed to be! The Drag and Drop audiobooks, email ready books, bookmarks and illustrations are all fantastic. I really like the Library Cards that allow each member of my family to keep their own open books. My 4 year old has every Beatrix Potter story open, and she uses them on her own without assistance. Clearly, I am a convert; Never again will I use the ‘stone knives and bear skins’ that the audiobook industry has been pushing on us as state of the art technology! A BIG THANK YOU.

By: John Jointer

John Jointer — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:26:14 +0000

The world of audiobooks is going digital, but (until now) the technology used to deliver content has been generations out of date. If you would like to see what going digital with audiobooks is going to be in the future, I invite you to have a look. (www.audiopod.ca) You will find ‘Drag-and-Drop Audiobooks, Illustrated Audiobooks, Automated Global MP3 Bookmarks, Email Ready Bookmarks, Table of Contents, and so much more. As the world is going wireless (WiFi/WiMax), the technology to get audiobooks anytime, anywhere will move to the foreground. We are testing it all right now, so access is free. However, when we cut over live library access is expected to be $10/month for anything you want. We are also looking the use of advertising to pay publishers for content, resulting in free access to the consumer. Publishers are starting to realize that getting paid every time their content is used will generate far more revenue that selling one copy and having it repeatedly used and copied. The audiobook industry is about to get yanked into the 21st century.

By: Chris Benson

Chris Benson — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 19:01:51 +0000

I work for a company called Audio Editions Books on Cassette & CD, and we devote a lot of thought how libraries affect retail sales of audiobooks, especially the growing availability of free digital downloads. It would be naive to think that they are not cannibalizing retail sales of physical product.

Many large publishers (Recorded Books, Brilliance, BBC Audioboks America) do in fact sell library-specific product at vastly inflated prices for the “Blockbuster” reasons you described above. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, for instance, is $39.99 for consumers, but $123.95 for libraries. Believe me, these publishers police this prety closely to prevent libraries from buying the cheaper version.

Also, we should clarify that, while it’s a boon to libraries and patrons to speed up circulation by burning to a computer or an iPod, that is actually illegal, and completely violates the terms of the copyright.

By: bowerbird

bowerbird — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 17:26:01 +0000

joe, joe, joe. you’re starting to get senile.

just like your last post, you’ve shown here
how very desperate publishers are getting.

the world has moved to digital. face that.
and then find a new way to find customers.

trying to prop up your old business model
just won’t work in this time of revolution…

-bowerbird