The Perdox Rant

So you now have your iPad and are looking to fill it with great ebooks you can read anywhere using the free Borders ereader. Right?

Go to the Borders website, click on ebooks at the top and do a search for the book Blind Fury by Lynda La Plante. In case you are lazy, click here.

Now here is the insanity. The online price for the paperback edition (including, get this, free delivery) is AUD$19.99. You’d think the ebook version would be cheaper, yes? If so, you’re an idiot!

The ebook version is AUD$22.95! No, this is not a misprint. I have sent them an email to check on the price and whether their pricing manager should be put in a loony bin.

With the paperback edition, there are costs involved in: typesetting, paper, ink, trees, storage and, of course, distribution. With the ebook edition, once the book has been typeset, there are no further costs.

I typeset books for publishers in Australia. I use InDesign and sometimes FrameMaker. Once a book has been typeset, from the same InDesign document, the book can be exported for print or pdf or as an epub all at the press of a few buttons.

So how the fuck does the ebook end up costing more than the printed book? Does this make sense to you? Can someone please tell me? Which idiots make up these prices?

WHAT THE FUCK IS THE MATTER WITH THESE DICKHEADS?

There, I have vented my anger. I feel much better now.