Re: monopoly

On 8/5/99, Barbara Ruhmann <brruhmann[_at_]ucdavis.edu wrote:
>
> I dispute the use of the word "always" in being able "to order books
> across publishers' agreed distribution borders." As late as the early
> 90's, I have had to use diverse methods to obtain copies of books which
> were not currently available in US editions, but were forbidden to us
> in the UK editions, because even though we couldn't get the US edition
> since it was unavailable, by their reckoning, it was.
>
> I have also discovered (and passed on to other buyers) how to circumvent
> getting a book published by the Canadian division of a company which has
> a US division, and consequently can't sell us books, even though the US
> division does not carry the title.
>
> Am I doing something illegal? I don't think anyone could prove it one
> way or the other, because it is such a quagmire. If I manage to procure
> legitimate copies of titles our students need, even if my method may be
> suspect, I feel I've done my job, and no monies were denied the
> publisher or author.

Publishers must honor their territory obligations. Their obligations do not extend to their customers and beyond.

> Sadly, those of us working for independent bookstores have been
> paying the price for those negotiations. As has been noted several
> times in the media recently, a number of publishers have been giving
> online booksellers deep pocket discounts that they are not allowing
> the traditional "brick-and-mortar" stores. Mom and pop stores,
> institutional stores, and other non- or small-chain operations are
> being hit hard, and, if they can't develop workable strategies or
> additional non-book product lines, are dying. On the bright side,
> several publishers have already been called to task for their
> policies, and have, in some cases, been fined heavily for their
> action. Additionally, more than one publisher has begun to accept
> prepaid orders only, but when they find out we are NOT one of the
> chains, quickly allow us to order on a purchase order and be
> invoiced. It's been a interesting ride...

Jeff Bezos tells that when he was operating from a garage and didn't even have a table for packing and shipping, he learned to include in his orders enough unavailable books to meet minimum requirements.

He also had the bright idea of getting kneepads, but one of his co-workers convinced him buying a table would be better.

Albert Henderson
Editor, PUBLISHING RESEARCH QUARTERLY
<70244.1532[_at_]compuserve.com> Received on Thu Aug 05 1999 - 22:43:33 GMT