Will ebook prices ‘drop to half’?

“Will ebook prices decline somewhat from now?” “They are already not that expensive. They are reasonably priced.”

Readers and publishers are in dispute over the price of ebooks lately. Controversy started when an ebook version of a newly released novel started to be sold for half the price of its print version.

The ebook version of “War of Characters” by novelist Kim Jin-myeong, which was released on September 10, is being sold for 7,000 won (6 US dollars) per copy, half the price of the print version. It is the first time that an ebook of a novel by a famed novelist has been sold for half the price of its print version. Seum Publishing, which published the new novel, said, “Sale of the ebook version at half the price is meant to help expand the ebook market,” adding, “The new ebook by novelist Kim is so popular that the number of ebook copies sold for a week is almost the same as that of the ebook version of ‘THAAD,’ his previous release.”

Currently, the per-copy price of ebooks is about 70 percent of that of their print versions in Korea. Readers claim ebooks are too expensive. Office worker Kim Jae-seong (40), said, “The price is too high, considering ebooks cannot be stored at bookshelves like a printed book, and we cannot sell them.” A survey of 500 readers in Korea by the Korea Consumer Agency in February found readers believe that ‘39.2 percent of the price of printed books is appropriate as the price of ebooks.’

The Korean publishing industry has different view, however. The head of a publishing company said, “There is a ‘certain price for knowledge. Furthermore, royalty paid to the writer for an ebook is set at 17 – 25 percent, which is higher than that for a print version (about 10 percent) of the book.” Kim Byeong-hee, head of the book business division at Yes 24, a leading online bookstore, “In foreign countries, ebooks are priced at 70 percent of the price of new printed releases in general.”

Then, how the cost of ebook publishing is calculated? As for the publishing cost of a printed book which is retailed at 10,000 won (8.6 US dollars) per copy, the factory price is set at about 6,000 won (5.16 dollars) to 7,000 won (6 dollars) including 10 percent for the writer’s royalty, 15 percent for editing and design, 10 percent for distribution, 10 percent for labor, and 10 percent for the publisher. Then, the book is sold for 10,000 won at bookstores.

In contrast, ebook requires an extra cost to publish for conversion into a format that is easy to read on the screen, but costs could also be cut extensively in many factors including distribution and labor, when compared with a printed book. An editor with a publishing company, who did not wanted to be identified, said, “Frankly, ebooks can be supplied at prices far lower than the current level, but we can hardly afford to lower the price due to worries that they will eat into market share of printed books.”

However, considering a deep slump that is plaguing the Korean publishing market, mounting voices call for galvanizing of the ebook market. Ebooks account for about 30 percent of the publishing market in the U.S., but they only take up 1 to 2 percent in the publishing market in Korea. Jang Eun-soo, head of Editing Culture Laboratory, said, “Even in overseas markets including the U.S., the ratio of ebooks substituting print versions is lower than thought,” adding, “Even if ebooks eat into the printed book market, there are ample business opportunities arising from ebooks, and Korea should galvanize the ebook market through diverse ebook services including a fixed-price system and a book rental system.”

zozo@donga.com