Dear B&N, NOT IMPRESSED

[tielan]

I must have a US credit card billing address to buy Melissa Scott and Jo Graham's new book Lost Things on Nookbook? What the ever-loving FRIGG?

On the plus side, I have SGA Legacy: The Furies!! In my preferred format, and at the same price and time as the Americannos get it. No muss, no fuss, no hoops!

THANK YOU CROSSROAD PRESS!

Surely, if companies really wanted me to buy their products, they would make it this easy all the time??? SURELY!!!

But apparently not...

Comments

[havocthecat]

That's...dumb. Of B&N. Glad you got another book reasonably, though!

[tielan]

It's ridiculous.

I mean, I'll buy it legally in the end, whether hardcopy or ebook. But every time they add a hoop, digital piracy gets that much more attractive, if only for the lack of fuss.

[busaikko]

*hollow laugh*

Make products easy to buy? Why would any reasonable business want to do that?

I remember how excited I was thinking I could legally download TV shows from Amazon.com and iTunes(USA), and the wave of disbelief when I realized I couldn't. What sense is that, when there I was sitting with credit card in hand?

[tielan]

It's the most stupid, shortsighted, shooting-themselves-in-the-foot idea ever.

They're so busy trying to keep the cattle in with fences and barbed wire, that it never occurs to them to provide fresh water so the cattle keep coming back!

[busaikko]

What I find doubly hilarious (or really pathetic) is that Amazon has completely grabbed the market, at least for physical items. Release-day delivery of the latest Harry Potter book? Amazon-Japan will do that! Box set of SGA videos that haven't aired on Japanese TV yet? Amazon-Japan!

...but just try buying digital versions of either of those. Illegal downloads, sure!... So I have no idea why digital copies are hard to market around the world, when obviously the copies are easy to make (hi, Pirate Bay!) and distribution channels are available. I kept hoping that the future would bring me less clutter, where all my stuff lived on one tidy hard drive, but instead I have a massive bookshelf full of books and videos.

[evil_plotbunny]

A good explanation of the rights issues involved.

Which is not to say that this is a good thing, but the point is that they're dealing with a system that is broken and the publishing industry still trying to figure out how to fix it going forward.