I don’t understand Amazon pricing.
Last week, Informal Learning
Friends’ books have been marked down, but not recent releases.
- Clark Aldrich, Learning by Doing,
$65.00$55.90 - Clark Aldrich, Simulations & the Future of Learning,
$50.00$43.00 - Clark Quinn, Engaging Learning,
$45.00$38.70 - Samantha Chapnick, Renaissance eLearning,
$42.00$36.12 - Michael Allen’s Guide to eLearning,
$34.95$23.07 - Curt Bonk, The Handbook of Blended Learning,
$75.00$63.75
Does anybody know how Amazon decides to discount?
The New & Used Page at Amazon Marketplace lists new copies of Informal Learning for $30.00, $33.00, $35.09, $38.00, $39.29, $43.20, $62.99, $66.38, and $89.58. This makes me wonder how minor vendors are getting books below cost. A bigger question: who is going to pay more than two times list price? And why?
They also list used copies for $33.00, $40.95, $61.99, and $66.39. The book has only been available for a week or two. Where do the used copies come from?
Related posts:
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
From: http://www.oligopolywatch.com/2006/11/19.html#a936
John Cassidy in the New Yorker in his review of the book “Going Long,” July 10, 2006, notes this return of market domination in the guise of the new economy:
“Today, thanks to globalization, deregulation, and technological progress, many of the twentieth-century industrial behemoths have fallen by the wayside. But don’t assume that giant, exploitative firms are a thing of the past. In recent years, eBay has sharply increased its commission rates; Amazon has admitted charging its customers different prices for the same goods; and Apple Computer has stubbornly refused to make its iTunes service compatible with portable music players other than iPods. Has the New Economy really moved past the familiar ‘winner take all’ dynamic? That depends on whether you’re looking at the long tail-or at who’s wagging it.”
Hi Jay,
On one hand, Amazon makes more cumulatively from books like ours than best sellers.
On the other hand, at least in my case if not yours, Amazon adds more value to books like mine than best sellers, in terms of making them available and even leading people who have never heard about them to them.
Hi Jay,
I am really enjoying your book so far. Regarding this post, there is another concept for me to mull, which is why Clark Quinn’s book $38.70 and mine $55.90? Is it really 1.44 times better? Should I be proud?
Clark, people are paying the price for your popularity. I can’t remember if I wrote it here or elsewhere, but book pricing is like airline pricing. Gouge ‘em while you can.