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Dr. Gibbs
I'll agree with you to a point. The value of a book or a music CD or computer is more than the sum of its parts. However there are serious differences as well. First and foremost is that we are talking about a product that does not need to be stored, shipped, stocked, or take up any shelf space. There is no need to manage inventory with e-books.
The purchaser of an e-book has no tangiable product after the purchase. The title cannot be lent to a friend as with a physical book. I can't sell the title at a used book store. The very nature of the use agreements on protected e-books limit how the end user can use the e-book.
99.9% of the production of an e-book is already accomplished through the steps taken during the traditional printing process.
As with Hard cover books, if you want to read it first, perhaps there should be some premium paid for a "first run" e-book. But there is no reason why e-books should cost as much as a hardcover, greedy publishers will drive buyers away from the e-book market
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