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Flimsy_Demand7237 t1_jdu9w1o wrote

Reply to comment by rkalo in Internet Archive Loses Lawsuit Over Ebook Copyright Infringement. Here’s What to Know... by Halaku

I guess my days as a librarian are numbered.

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ItsCalledDayTwa t1_jduang7 wrote

I mean, that may be true, but not because of this. Libraries pay for each copy of a book they lend.

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Daktyl198 t1_jdueuqe wrote

Libraries pay for each copy, and they pay about 30x as much per copy. And each copy can only be lended a certain number of times (40 or 50 times) before it has to be repurchased.

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Flimsy_Demand7237 t1_jdug9et wrote

Yeah ebook restrictions are often absolutely absurd, which is why I disagree with this ruling on principle. Physical books are not 'licensed' to be artificially withdrawn and repurchased year on year. These virtuous publishers make more profit % than Walmart, Bank of America, Toyota, they all go barely 10% profit. Ebook publishers? -- 35%-40% profits. On average, ebook cost has 37% upmarked just for profit. It's an artificial greed market where none should exist.

Excellent doco on the academic papers and textbook ebook side of this issue: https://vimeo.com/273358286

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Artanthos t1_jdupl20 wrote

Walmart actually has a very low profit margin, <2%.

Walmart makes its money on volume.

https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/WMT/walmart/profit-margins

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cheeseybacon11 t1_jdv11ye wrote

So they're still correct. Just a weird way to prove their point.

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Artanthos t1_jdwxzgx wrote

I wasn’t disagreeing so much as reinforcing with more accurate information.

People like to shit on Walmart.

While a lot of the points are technically correct, the whole point is to bring lower prices to the consumer.

Walmart simply cannot correct many of their issues without raising prices, because they already have a very low profit margin. It would quickly flip from making money from volume to losing billions.

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skttsm t1_jdvfo3q wrote

Digital media often has a 3 year or 30-50 ish licensing. And they pay roughly 3x for ebooks and audiobooks from what I've seen. I haven't seen or heard of anything near 30x before though

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thepsycholeech t1_jdunawu wrote

Woah really? Why are the library versions so expensive? Is it an option for libraries to purchase retail copies instead?

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Daktyl198 t1_jdusheg wrote

No, it’s not an option for them to purchase retail copies. They are legally required to purchase special “lending license” variants of books because book publishers lobbied that libraries cost them too much money by just existing.

Afaik, the lending limit only applies to digital copies of books, as physical copies naturally wear out or get lost with time, and thus will require repurchase either way unlike a digital copy. The physical copies are still hellishly expensive.

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Trashytelly t1_jdw7iyg wrote

Physical library books are unlikely to be loaned as much as 50 times before being withdrawn from the shelves. Both age and wear and tear will cause them to be withdrawn long before that number is reached.

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Denziloe t1_jdvs1db wrote

You're a librarian and you think library books are free?

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Flimsy_Demand7237 t1_jdvtgoc wrote

Very odd that you've had to pay to loan books out from your library.

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kwalshyall t1_jdvvcw7 wrote

It's certainly cheaper than that bureaucratic crook, The Wallet Inspector, at least.

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Denziloe t1_jdw4476 wrote

Not really. Many libraries work that way. And the ones that don't, you're paying for through taxes. The books are paid for.

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Flimsy_Demand7237 t1_jdxituc wrote

And IA paid for these books as well. They usually have a 1 to 1 digital lending system but the court struck that down as well, so they can't digitally lend at all. Again it's sort of disturbing that you're advocating a library function the same as a bookstore. Libraries do not function this way. A non standard patron or patron of a niche library might pay for membership but as you say, most standard libraries are covered by taxes. They are a public good. I would not expect the homeless or poor to have to pay to loan a book -- libraries are one of the few places they can go and not be charged for use of service.

As I've said elsewhere, there will come a time when physical libraries become either outdated or irrelevant. Then we will only be able to lend ebooks, and if this 1 to 1 system is not in place, publishers will make sure libraries cease to exist through unaffordable fees and conditions. They are already holding libraries hostage to their ebook collections through extreme pricing we have to pay for access. Especially so at academic libraries where Elsiever and the rest have libraries over a barrel on pricing and access.

Publishers want us gone. It's that simple.

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