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Monday
Mar082010

How much does it cost to publish an e-book versus a paper book?

DateMonday, March 8, 2010 at 9:53AM

Creating a e-book doesn't cost any less in the publishing process than creating on paper, but, according to the New York Times, in publishing this way, we do cut out the middleman (well, not in the case of the Kindle), making it possible to sell a $26 hardcover for only $13 and make a slightly higher profit. Profit? Well, maybe not more profit, just more revenue that can help offset the costs of publishing a book.

See the math here.

The truth is that the costs of printing are are only a small portion of the total publishing costs, and the market for e-book is still really slim. To price books so inexpensively, we publishers would have to be able to sell many thousands of copies of any title to make the math work.

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References (2)

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  • Source
    Source: Math of Publishing Meets the eBook
    by Motoko Rich at The New York Times on March 1, 2010
    In the emerging world of e-books, many consumers assume it is only logical that publishers are saving vast amounts by not having to print or distribute paper books, leaving room to pass along those savings to their customers.
  • Source
    Source: How Much it Costs to Publish an eBook vs. A Real Book
    by Matt Buchanan at Gizmondo on March 1, 2010
    Ebooks negate the most obvious costs of hardcover books: No dead trees, ink, warehouse or shelf storage, so of course they're cheaper. In fact, isn't $12.99 for an ebook just a little bit pricey? Wellll, the NYT breaks it down.

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