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<blockquote data-quote="Gargoyle" data-source="post: 57395" data-attributes="member: 529"><p><strong>Re: Re: How do you plan on stoping e-mail/copying?</strong></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>No offense taken. As an analogy, consider that it's a proven fact that computer games that are copy protected have better sales than those without any sort of protection. Retailers often put pressure on publishers to put this sort of protection on to prevent returns. I believe this extends into electronic media. Locks keep honest men honest.</p><p></p><p>Note that I understand that computer games with annoyingly buggy copyright protection or that cause their users to do backflips to get the product they paid for to work do NOT enjoy additional sales. I would never implement security measures that inhibit the enjoyment of a product by legitimate customers, and would rather suffer losses due to piracy.</p><p></p><p>I agree that anything that can be viewed can be copied. Making it difficult to do so for those with average technical skill without making the legitimate use of the product inconvenient WILL increase sales, however. There's nothing to prevent you from copying the PHB or any other printed product and selling it, for instance, except that it's not worth it to do so. Increasing the cost of piracy is the goal, not eliminating it. But as I've said, I think piracy of documents is just part of the cost of doing business, so I have not plans right now to implement any kind of security. </p><p></p><p>As far as the discount on a printed product, the answer is "I don't know". I haven't figured it out yet and only hope to do it. No promises. As I posted earlier: "I'd also like to give a discount to purchasers of our PDFs on the future printed versions, but at this point I'm not sure it's technically or financially feasible, so no guarantees on that. " </p><p></p><p>I do think it's possible. My current thoughts are this: I'd have to keep a database of everyone's e-mail address who downloads it electronically (This part's easy). Then they'd have to send a proof of purchase of the printed material in for a rebate. It's not as convenient as I'd like, and I'm open to suggestions. But trading the cost of a stamp for a few dollars is pretty reasonable. Think of it more as a manufacturer's rebate.</p><p></p><p>And there's no reason to believe this would reduce retail sales overall. Releasing simultaneous electronic and printed products in fact enhances retail sales by offering a no risk "try before you buy" option in the form of a cheap PDF. It will attract more customers who may not be willing to risk the full retail price on a product. Some retail sales will certainly be lost as some will be satisfied by having just the PDF, but I think more retail sales overall will be gained by customers who seek to try before they buy with PDFs. As far as retailers not wanting to carry the product because it's available electronically, I don't think that's likely. Most won't really know if it's available electronically or not, and those that do will still carry it if it has a nifty cover and sells well. It's a bit like saying video rental stores will force the cable company out of business or vice versa. There will always be a demand for printed product, and if there is a demand, retailers will carry it. If there's a demand for electronic product, someone will carry it that way. Fear of piracy and smaller profit margins is the main deterrant to publishers regarding the latter.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gargoyle, post: 57395, member: 529"] [b]Re: Re: How do you plan on stoping e-mail/copying?[/b] No offense taken. As an analogy, consider that it's a proven fact that computer games that are copy protected have better sales than those without any sort of protection. Retailers often put pressure on publishers to put this sort of protection on to prevent returns. I believe this extends into electronic media. Locks keep honest men honest. Note that I understand that computer games with annoyingly buggy copyright protection or that cause their users to do backflips to get the product they paid for to work do NOT enjoy additional sales. I would never implement security measures that inhibit the enjoyment of a product by legitimate customers, and would rather suffer losses due to piracy. I agree that anything that can be viewed can be copied. Making it difficult to do so for those with average technical skill without making the legitimate use of the product inconvenient WILL increase sales, however. There's nothing to prevent you from copying the PHB or any other printed product and selling it, for instance, except that it's not worth it to do so. Increasing the cost of piracy is the goal, not eliminating it. But as I've said, I think piracy of documents is just part of the cost of doing business, so I have not plans right now to implement any kind of security. As far as the discount on a printed product, the answer is "I don't know". I haven't figured it out yet and only hope to do it. No promises. As I posted earlier: "I'd also like to give a discount to purchasers of our PDFs on the future printed versions, but at this point I'm not sure it's technically or financially feasible, so no guarantees on that. " I do think it's possible. My current thoughts are this: I'd have to keep a database of everyone's e-mail address who downloads it electronically (This part's easy). Then they'd have to send a proof of purchase of the printed material in for a rebate. It's not as convenient as I'd like, and I'm open to suggestions. But trading the cost of a stamp for a few dollars is pretty reasonable. Think of it more as a manufacturer's rebate. And there's no reason to believe this would reduce retail sales overall. Releasing simultaneous electronic and printed products in fact enhances retail sales by offering a no risk "try before you buy" option in the form of a cheap PDF. It will attract more customers who may not be willing to risk the full retail price on a product. Some retail sales will certainly be lost as some will be satisfied by having just the PDF, but I think more retail sales overall will be gained by customers who seek to try before they buy with PDFs. As far as retailers not wanting to carry the product because it's available electronically, I don't think that's likely. Most won't really know if it's available electronically or not, and those that do will still carry it if it has a nifty cover and sells well. It's a bit like saying video rental stores will force the cable company out of business or vice versa. There will always be a demand for printed product, and if there is a demand, retailers will carry it. If there's a demand for electronic product, someone will carry it that way. Fear of piracy and smaller profit margins is the main deterrant to publishers regarding the latter. [/QUOTE]
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