Ptolus at Amazon?

[Jürgen Hubert]

I think the problem the detractors have here isn't that they don't want to have Ptolus - they want it cheaper than what the producer considers to be a "fair price".

And I can completely understand it if the producer wants to give non-Amazon distributors and sellers a nod. After all, none of these can deal with such bulks as Amazon, and thus can't sell books as cheaply.

Malhavoc Press wants to support a distribution network that's independent from Amazon and sees its continued existence as something positive. I can respect their stance, as well as their decision to act on it.

And to anyone who is unwilling to pay the full price for it: Not buying the book is your free choice, and I am sure that the book will find plenty of other buyers. But please admit that this is not about Amazon, but about your refusal to pay the same price as others for the book.

 

[Numion]

They create the book, and they get to decide to whom they want to sell it. As simple as that.

Of course. It's not going to stop me whining about it, though

They made a decision, and I think that decision sucks for all the reasons I have posted above.

(And it didn't stop me from buying Ptolus, either. Kinda like whining about the price of crack.)

 

[JustaPlayer]

But please admit that this is not about Amazon, but about your refusal to pay the same price as others for the book.

I'll be one of the first to admit it. And one of my best friends owns a game store. I've always been mercenary with my dollar.

 

[JustaPlayer]

Kinda like whining about the price of crack.)

Crack is cheap. Being a RPG junkie.... now that's expensive.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

Being a RPG junkie.... now that's expensive.

Well, RPGs are a luxury, not a neccessity for living.





Yes, yes, you can stop howling in protest now.


Anyway, people in the RPG industry make little enough money as it is. There is a reason why industry professionals steadily move to other jobs that actually give them a living wage, especially if they have a family to support. So I while the price of RPG books will certainly be a factor in my buying decisions (I only have a limited budget, after all), I won't whine because a book is "too expensive" because that's almost never really the case.

 

[Numion]

I think the problem the detractors have here isn't that they don't want to have Ptolus - they want it cheaper than what the producer considers to be a "fair price".

Nope. I want it as cheaply as possible. Like I want every other item I buy. Here's another shocker: I want as high a wage as possible. I'm not alone with those feelings, can you imagine?

And I can completely understand it if the producer wants to give non-Amazon distributors and sellers a nod. After all, none of these can deal with such bulks as Amazon, and thus can't sell books as cheaply.

Companies shouldn't have to apologize for being efficient. If FLGSs can't compete, it is their own fault. Incompetent clerks, lousy service and high prices are what I've encountered in FLGSs. If they fixed those, maybe these anti-Amazon campaigns wouldn't be needed. When companies are efficient, they win, consumers wins. It's not a zero-sum game.

Malhavoc Press wants to support a distribution network that's independent from Amazon and sees its continued existence as something positive. I can respect their stance, as well as their decision to act on it.

It is mostly the distribution chains task to stay relevant as a distribution chain.

And to anyone who is unwilling to pay the full price for it: Not buying the book is your free choice, and I am sure that the book will find plenty of other buyers. But please admit that this is not about Amazon, but about your refusal to pay the same price as others for the book.

Obviously it's not about my refusal, since I just paid the WW price for the book. This is about artificially resuscitating businesses that generally are not well run or competitive in the current environment. The price gap between Amazon price and WW price was kind of a subsidiary to keep FLGS that I don't need around, around.

I don't believe in stuff like that. When people are giving breaks to the old model of selling stuff, it's that much harder to get into the new program. I know, change is scary, but there are a lot of people that don't get any extra value from FLGSs. Getting stuff cheaper from amazon means for people like me that I'll buy more stuff (RPG and otherwise), not less money spent.

 

[Arashi Ravenblade]

yeah im getting the books as cheaply as i can. i dont even buy from local gaming shops anymore. Heck my Girl Friend is trying to drag me to one up in Columbus and my family thought they would never hear me say i didnt want to waste my time.
Seriously why would you pay more for something. We dont buy the more expensive food, gas or what-not to support the local store selling our gas or food, we buy whats more finacially feasible for us, the same should go for our hobby.

 

[Staffan]

Anyway, people in the RPG industry make little enough money as it is.

But part of the reason for the high price is the inefficient distribution model. Out of the $30 I pay for an RPG book, maybe 10 of those actually reach the people who make it. If companies could sell directly to customers, they could lower the price and get more money themselves.

And the situation is worse in other countries. Here in Sweden, the smaller stores buy from distributors that are raking in the big dough by ignoring the fact that the dollar has fallen through the floor in the last few years. At my FLGS, a $30 book costs 335 SEK. A straight dollar conversion plus sales tax (6% on books) would be more like 233 SEK. That's 43% more than it should be. I like the people at my local store, but I'm seriously thinking about not supporting them anymore, at least not for non-Swedish games.

 

[Barak]

Nope. I want it as cheaply as possible. Like I want every other item I buy. Here's another shocker: I want as high a wage as possible. I'm not alone with those feelings, can you imagine?



Companies shouldn't have to apologize for being efficient. If FLGSs can't compete, it is their own fault. Incompetent clerks, lousy service and high prices are what I've encountered in FLGSs. If they fixed those, maybe these anti-Amazon campaigns wouldn't be needed. When companies are efficient, they win, consumers wins. It's not a zero-sum game.



It is mostly the distribution chains task to stay relevant as a distribution chain.



Obviously it's not about my refusal, since I just paid the WW price for the book. This is about artificially resuscitating businesses that generally are not well run or competitive in the current environment. The price gap between Amazon price and WW price was kind of a subsidiary to keep FLGS that I don't need around, around.

I don't believe in stuff like that. When people are giving breaks to the old model of selling stuff, it's that much harder to get into the new program. I know, change is scary, but there are a lot of people that don't get any extra value from FLGSs. Getting stuff cheaper from amazon means for people like me that I'll buy more stuff (RPG and otherwise), not less money spent.

QFT

When we buy stuff at Amazon, we don't take any money from the people who produces the books. We take money away from distributors and LGS. In fact, in many case we give -more- money to the people who produces the books, since, most of the time, the money "saved" is used to buy -more- books, anyway. I know there's a quite a few gaming books I own I wouldn't have bought had I not gotten most of my books through Amazon.

I'm getting sorta tired of the mentality that some people have of grouping people who buy from Amazon only slightly higher than people who download illegal PDFs.

Now, an argument that is often brought up is that LGS's need to stay in business for the hobby to grow, or even to remain at it's current point, or perhaps even not disappear completely.

Well, if that is truly the case, the hobby's on life-support (which a lot of people will say it is), and will die soon, because LGS' -are- disappearing. The Internet -has- replaced LGS for many functions it used to serve, and that will only continue. And closing the barn's door after the horses have ran out won't do a darn thing.

 

[DMH]

Seriously why would you pay more for something. We dont buy the more expensive food, gas or what-not to support the local store selling our gas or food, we buy whats more finacially feasible for us, the same should go for our hobby.

That is not true of all of us. I am waiting 3 extra months and paying full price to get some stuff I could buy online because I don't want my FLGS to go under. It is annoying, but I want a chance to browse the books before I buy and that is impossible (to the depth I want) for any online vendor.

Pdfs are different since they are so cheap. I would have to say that I am not happy with ~25% of the ones I have purchased in the last 2 years.