WotC Official PDF versions - would you buy them?

[PrecociousApprentice]

I would probably pay as much, maybe even more, for pdfs. I am practically fused to my laptop. I also am a bike commuter. Physical books suck for that kina lifestyle. I get an online copy of all my med school books for free with the purchase of the hardbacks, but this isn't as good as a pdf. I like all my info in the form of electrons. Much more portable than if you have to lug around the protons and neutrons with them.

 

[Alzrius]

I'd pay anywhere from 50% to 75% of the hardcover price. PDF copies for sale are important to me, since I've long since run out of physical shelf space.

 

[Belorin]

I buy the hard copy anyway, but would definitely appreciate a .pdf version. I'd pay 50% of cover if I had to.

Bel

 

[jeffhartsell]

No, not necessarily. Copyright isn't absolute. Intellectual property owners' copyrights are balanced by end-users' fair use rights, and making that archive copy can indeed be fair use. Obviously the media sellers (and particularly the middleman companies) want you to believe otherwise, but there it is.

Another use ruled legitimate by the courts is taping a TV show to be viewed later (which is why we have Tivo, et al), and arguably, digitizing a book you own for your own personal use is comparable.

Some more reading: http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter9/9-c.html

Good stuff!! I thought copying music, books, DVDs, etc was illegal.

 

[Fifth Element]

Good stuff!! I thought copying music, books, DVDs, etc was illegal.

Be careful of taking advice about copyright from internet messageboards. Just sayin'.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Personally I think each hardcover book should have a download code in a sealed envelope on the inside cover that will allow a person who purchased a paper copy of the book to download the PDF for free.
For those who don't want to purchase the paper copy but only want the PDF they could purchase the download for < $20.

Either way, the purchaser ends up having to pay for the material only once which I think is fair.

 

[ShadowDenizen]

Count me in as one of those who prefers print books as opposed to E-books.

That said, I have bought PDF copies of books, and will likely continue to do so.

BUT, price-point is far more important for me when it comes to E-books; where I might spend $40 on a harcover book I want, I'd be loath to spend more than $10 on a PDF copy of that same book.

Maybe it's a psychological thing...

 

[Grymar]

The question of whether or not selling the pdf would enable piracy is moot. The cat is out of the bag already on this one. There are publisher's proof pdf copies of all three core books already moving around the pirate sphere, so it isn't a question of whether they will be pirated. Now, the question should be, can WotC make legit money off of the digital products.

For me, I'd pay probably $5 for such a thing. Useful to have, but not critical.

 

[Blackrat]

Yeah I'd buy them, if they were reasonably cheaper. Say maybe a 1/4 or 1/3 of the price of hardcover.

 

[Kzach]

Given the miniscule overhead to put out a PDF version and the fact that practicality dictates a hard-copy (I primarily DM so I don't believe I have a choice), I wouldn't be prepared to pay more than 25-30% of the hard-copy RRP.

It is certainly convenient to have PDF copies, however if I had to choose one over the other, I'd definitely go with a hard-copy.