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The Amazon, Wal-Mart price war

Hugh

Hugh

Member
Wal-Mart said it is determined to have the lowest online prices for books. Last Thursday they priced it's 10 most anticipated hardcovers at $10 a piece. Amazon matched them, and then Wal-Mart dropped their price to $9. Then they dropped it another penny a few hours later. A Wal-Mart spokesman said they were prepared to make further cuts. This is from Saturday's Wall Street Journal.

David Young, CEO of Hatchette Book Group, said that if the industry's top books continue to be sold for $9 online it will be increasingly difficult for publishers to launch "the writers of tommorrow" because the book market may narrow significantly.

The article doesn't mention whether or not Mr. Young is only referring to the printed book market. Will this have an affect on e-books? I think the writers of tommorrow, of which I am one, ;) , will have to get used to the idea that our books may not make us as much money as Stephen King made from his printed books. I do, however, think we will reach just as many readers.
 
As a consumer, I'm always thrilled to find bargains, but Walmart.com does not always have the book I'm looking for.
 
Competition at its greatest.:) Right now, Milton Friedman is spinning in the grave with glee. Nothing like two giant monolithic powers engaging in a race to the bottom.
 
OK, I apologize in advance, but I am going to rant about Wal-Mart for a sec...

I was born and raised in a small town in southern Ohio. 15 years ago, our town was "fortunate" to get a Wal-Mart. It brought some fresh excitement and low wage job opportunities to the area. Since then, the town has lost 2 pharmacies, 1 dept store, 2 grocery stores and numerous other novelty/variety shops that existed in the old part of town. Now we have about 9 fast food joints, a Super Wal-Mart, and about 6 convenience/gas stations a Rent to Own, 3 different "Check and GO/Cash Advance shops, and that is about it. There are no shops in the old part of town with the cobblestone streets, but there are a couple of Attorney's offices, and a Chiropractor.

But more sentimentally, to me, we had a small new/used bookstore that was wonderful to go into and browse, or search for that special book...it has also is closed. I miss that store. I imagine many of these small mom and pop bookstores are closed.

How can a small bookstore compete with these Giants?
 
Justin91 said:
OK, I apologize in advance, but I am going to rant about Wal-Mart for a sec...

I was born and raised in a small town in southern Ohio. 15 years ago, our town was "fortunate" to get a Wal-Mart. It brought some fresh excitement and low wage job opportunities to the area. Since then, the town has lost 2 pharmacies, 1 dept store, 2 grocery stores and numerous other novelty/variety shops that existed in the old part of town. Now we have about 9 fast food joints, a Super Wal-Mart, and about 6 convenience/gas stations a Rent to Own, 3 different "Check and GO/Cash Advance shops, and that is about it. There are no shops in the old part of town with the cobblestone streets, but there are a couple of Attorney's offices, and a Chiropractor.

But more sentimentally, to me, we had a small new/used bookstore that was wonderful to go into and browse, or search for that special book...it has also is closed. I miss that store. I imagine many of these small mom and pop bookstores are closed.

How can a small bookstore compete with these Giants?
Click to expand...

David Young, the person quoted in the article I mentioned, says that they can't. He appears to be correct, how can a small independent bookstore sell new release hardcovers for $9? They can't even buy them that cheap.
 
aimages.indiebound.com_684_086_9781580086684.jpg
never actually read it, I just hate wal-mart. I hope they dont see this post and try and destroy me.Or at least join the forum make a post after me ,claiming to give more book incite then i do at a far cheaper rate.
 
Disenthral said:
aimages.indiebound.com_684_086_9781580086684.jpg
never actually read it, I just hate wal-mart. I hope they dont see this post and try and destroy me.Or at least join the forum make a post after me ,claiming to give more book incite then i do at a far cheaper rate.
Click to expand...

:)

I have tried to boycott Wal-mart...it s very difficult to do.
 
They can give away the top ten books for free, and there will still be countless other books that can't be discounted so easily. This price battle is like a veneer on a much bigger market, where there is still room for more than the two pat newsmakers.
 
from the ap:

New Stephen King e-book to cost $35

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer The Associated Press

Wednesday, October 21, 2009 1:21 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — The latest weapon in the publishing price wars: Stephen King.

Scribner announced Wednesday that the digital edition of King's "Under the Dome," a 1,000-plus page novel, would have a list price of $35, several dollars higher than for what e-books usually are listed. Amazon.com and other online retailers have been offering best-selling e-editions for $9.99, which publishers fear is unrealistically low.

"Given the current state of the marketplace and trends in digital book pricing, we believe that this is the most appropriate publishing sequence for this particular 1088 page work of fiction," said spokesman Adam Rothberg of Scribner's parent company, Simon & Schuster.

Amazon.com and others already have been losing money by offering such deep discounts and presumably would lose even more if they sold King's for $9.99.

In another shot at the e-market, King's e-book will not be released until Dec. 24, virtually the end of the holiday season and a month after the hardcover. E-books already have been delayed for Sen. Edward Kennedy's "True Compass" and Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue" as publishers try to prevent the cheaper digital editions from taking sales from hardcovers, which, until recently, cost more.

Thanks to an online price war among Target.com, Amazon and Walmart.com, the hardcover for "Under the Dome," "Going Rogue" and other popular November releases can be pre-ordered for $9 or less, a strong source of concern among publishers and independent booksellers, who cannot afford to charge so little.

King, ironically, is a pioneer and champion of e-books. In 2000, his e-novella "Riding the Bullet" was initially offered for free and became an online sensation, downloaded so many times that Internet sites offering the book were overwhelmed.
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Now it's getting interesting. I wondered how they would handle best selling authors and it looks like they are doing two things with them - delaying the e-book to avoid taking sales away from the new hardcover, and secondly charging a higher price for the e-book relative to other e-books.
 
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Trade...tml?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=

Print Back to story
Trade association asks for probe of book price war
Booksellers association asks Justice Dept. to look into online price wars

On 10:24 pm EDT, Thursday October 22, 2009

NEW YORK (AP) -- A trade organization wants the government to look into the price war among online booksellers.

The American Booksellers Association sent a letter Thursday to the U.S. Department of Justice, asking for an investigation into the cost-cutting race among Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Target.com. The price war has resulted in hardcovers such as Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue" being offered for under $9.

The booksellers association fears that such prices are "devaluing the very concept of the book" and make it impossible for smaller stores to compete.

Some smaller stores, however, have said that they're not concerned about the price competition. They say it affects the most commercial books, which are less vital to independent stores than they are to discount clubs and superstore chains.

"We are committed to providing our customers with low prices, and our online book announcement demonstrates that commitment," said Daphne Davis Moore, a spokeswoman at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. "We always work to comply with applicable law."
Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Service
 
Noting that the three e-commerce sites are selling best-selling, hardcover books at $8.98 to $9.00, well below cost, the trade group says these best-sellers, which are critical revenue-producers for independent bookstores, are being used by the online retailers “as a loss leader to attract customers to buy other, more profitable merchandise. The entire book industry is in danger of becoming collateral damage in this war.”
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Crybaby alert

This just in-the horse and buggy carriage amalgamated union is reporting that people are buying vehicles with engines. It is alleged that the horse and buggy carriage business is suffering as a result. :whistling:
 
I've heard this kind of debate going on a lot more lately, especially in regards to how ebooks will ultimately end printed books. I guess I'm lucky, since I love paper and will never give up my hardcovers and leatherbounds, to be living in the transition period, if it is one. I also lament the death of ye olde small town bookstores, even Barnes & Noble is a little impersonal for me. But where price and selection are superior, sentimentality dies to rationality. Now, I can't say about Walmart's online selection, but I refuse to buy from them in-store. Their selection there is almost insulting to me. Sometimes I do have to resort to Amazon though...

I guess I compromise by sticking with my local small seller when I can, and ordering from Abebooks for the rest.
 
I love Walmart. I love the fact that my dollars go further at walmart then those small stores for the same items.

As for bookstore. . . is there a hint of hyprocrisy in the air? How can anybody blame Walmart for the small bookstore going under when each and everyone of us here is more then willing to go to other sources to save money on books? The only people that should be complaining about Walmart and books are those people that actually refuse to spend their book money anywhere other then their local bookstore.
 
Robert said:
I love Walmart. I love the fact that my dollars go further at walmart then those small stores for the same items.

As for bookstore. . . is there a hint of hyprocrisy in the air? How can anybody blame Walmart for the small bookstore going under when each and everyone of us here is more then willing to go to other sources to save money on books? The only people that should be complaining about Walmart and books are those people that actually refuse to spend their book money anywhere other then their local bookstore.
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I think most people do have a bit of hypocrisy here, simply because most of us, while disliking these alternatives, have resorted to them. That would be the rationality clashing with sentimentality I mentioned. Naturally, any place that can offer the same goods for lower prices will win, and competition is mandatory for our capitalist economy. But Walmart doesn't merely create competition, it obliterates it until it stands alone; we all know the stories of little stores' deaths. Perhaps we simply live in a day when the entrepreneur (and the old idea of the American Dream) is obsolete, and competition must exist amongst the mega-stores. Now, I can't really speculate on which is better. All i know is that, if Walmart in the future manages to overwhelm not only local business but larger ones as well, then there is a problem.
 
The Mythwriter said:
All i know is that, if Walmart in the future manages to overwhelm not only local business but larger ones as well, then there is a problem.
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I would agree with you if they were acting more like Rockefeller's Standard Oil Co., but they aren't. Yes, they can depress the price of their books as they can make up for it in other areas(i.e.-grocery, etc.) That isn't unfair. They should be able to price things however they want and live with those decisions accordingly. Some people won't go to Wal-Mart because it is too "trashy" so they choose to shop at Target. Those folks are who Target well, targets.:lol: Wal-Mart is not a threat to bookstores as real bookworms don't just read the "new" stuff. Yes, I like King and Grisham, but Wal-Mart isn't going to carry Turgenev or Steinbeck. Businesses can compete against Wal-Mart, they just have to find the right niche. Face it, why do people buy $4.00 lattes from Starbucks instead of the .50 drip garbage from a gas station? You do get what you pay for and Starbucks makes hand over fist money on that principle. They have a niche, and they thrive. If the booksellers can't make money selling whats new and hip, then they should specialize in other areas, or at least, bring in certain writers to host conferences and to do autographs in their store. In other words, work it out.:cool:
 
Occlith said:
They Adapt or Die. I haven't yet bought a book at WalMart but I don't think they have big comfy chairs, knowledgeable salespeople, or a cafe with scones.
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Seeing as how it is Walmart, they will have the hard plastic swivel seats, sales associates with the 1,000 yard stare, and a deli with 64oz Cokes and hoho cakes.
 
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