The DRM battle is on - what's your take?

DRM is like a key-less padlock from Flickr (CC)

The story behind Digital RM is this - DRM is a way for publishers to digitally control how, where and in what format you read a purchased book. For example, if you buy an ebook on the Kindle, and later if you want to read it on your new Nook, it is illegal to convert and read that book, if it is DRM-protected. In actual fact, it is easy enough to transfer it to your computer, convert using calibre and read on any format - pdf, mobi, doc etc.
However, it is illegal to do so for all DRM protected books. 

What does this mean for you?


Publishers use third party software to handle the DRM-locks on your books. If that software or server goes " dark" (shuts down) then the ebooks are gone too, like with Fictionwise ebooks protected by Overdrive software. You keep paper books for years, don't you expect ebooks to do the same?


Interestingly, O'Reilly publishing discovered that sales of their textbooks more than doubled since they dropped DRM books 18+ months ago


Cory Doctorow's view: A Whip to beat us with 
Ebook DRM provider goes dark, the books you paid for disappear

Teaser Tuesday - Fury 02 - Green-Eyed Envy

The Teaser Tuesday is back - after a couple of months of no memes here on E-Volving Books.
I just finished Drink Deep (Merit, an UF Vampire series) and am halfway through the second book in a Fury series by Kasey Mackenzie. I picked it up because an urban fantasy around Furies was new, and thought it might be worth checking out.
 
"Recognition hit Harper like a punch to the stomach. She staggered a crooked step back, brushing up against Scott behind her and Penn to her right."
 
Mini Review:
The first book was decent, but this novel isn't nearly as kick-ass. The heroine isn't going full fury-mode and fighting very much so far. The mystery she is solving doesn't appear to require typical detective skills, and the plot devices are weak.
My rating: Meh.

***

To join into the TT fun, visit the link below!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Review: Touch of Power by Maria Snyder

In this new yet-to-release series by Maria Snyder, of Poison Studies fame, we explore a world that has turned against healers. I've enjoyed all her other books so far - they have strong, principled heroines, who end up key to the battle between good vs. evil.
Publication Date: 27th December, 2011

The Story:  A terrible plague has wiped out large swathes of peoples across the country, and the kingdom has dissolved into several weakened states. Each healer who tried healing a plague carrier died in turn of the plague. With only 100 healers or so in the guild, the Healers Guild proclaimed that they would not heal the plague carriers, and instead tried to find the cure. However, this proclamation resulted in massive anti-healer sentiment, and began a wide scale persecution of the healers. Now only one healer remains - Avry.

Avry has been on the run, but now must choose sides in the war for the weakened states. The power plays between the various contending factions mean that a healer is a valuable piece on the board, and Avry's choice plays a key factor in which faction might eventually triumph.

Plus:Avry and other characters are really interesting to read, and their motivations unveil gradually as the plot develops. I'm keen to read more about them, if there are other books planned. She keeps her secrets to herself, which is a nice refreshing change from heroines that blurt them out to the first hero that comes along!

Minus:  I'm seeing a lot of fantasy that has pages and pages dedicated to travel, travel rations and the countryside - it seems to be a staple of the genre, but I'd like to see something creative here!

Overall: A solid, engrossing tale.

You can read an earlier review of Maria Snyder's Storm Glass here

Thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for providing the review copy.

Is the hardback book dying?

The time between hardbacks and paperbacks is progressively decreasing, and ebooks now release at almost the same time as the hardback. My recent purchase of Kate Daniel's latest by Ilona Andrews was the same day as the hardback, but I got it at 1/2 the cost.
We know more buyers are doing this, as Amazon recently reported that ebooks were outselling hardbacks by 143 to 100 (Publishers Weekly).
Ebooks also accelerate the paperbacks release dates - several publishing houses now release paperbacks within 6 months of the hardback release. 

“I really do think that e-books are part of the reason for this trend of hurrying up that paperback,” said Carrie Kania, the publisher of Harper Perennial and It Books. “You don’t have to wait for a lower-priced version of that book now. I think we need to move more quickly in general.”

Traditionally, the gap between hardback and paperback releases was 1 year.
Still, I would rather wait the three-odd months to the ebook release, and perhaps get it from my library, unless the author was a favorite of mine (Terry Pratchett, Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, Ilona Andrews among others).
Lots of interesting books have recently released directly as trade of mass market paperbacks - Scott Westerley's Uglies series did crazy good business in this format, perhaps justifying the no-hardback decision taken. Does this mean we are seeing a trend where the end lies in no hardback releases? 
Who knows!

Further reading? (nytimes)

Simon and Schuster ebook sales now 15% of revenues

The recent Q2 results for CBS corp included the Simon and Schuster results too, under the Publishing section. While overall revenues went down in the past year, the ebook and digital sales grew and more than doubled in revenue. Which means that those sales now count for 15% of their business!

I'm excited - I hope this translates into easier ebook sales in multiple countries.
Wouldn't it also be great if ebooks are released on the same day as the hardback release, but priced lower? I know that cannibalization of hardback sales by ebooks is a real and prevalent issue but Publishers ought to start figuring out ways to combat this aside from Price. 

"Publishing revenues for the second quarter of 2011 decreased 3% to $183 million from $189 million for the same prior-year period, as strong growth in the sale of more profitable digital content was offset by lower print book sales.  Digital content revenues for the second quarter of 2011 more than doubled last year's second quarter digital sales and represented 15% of Publishing's total revenues.  Best-selling titles in the second quarter included The Greater Journey by David McCullough and The Original Argument by Glenn Beck."

Read the entire results here (cbsatlanta.com)

Kindle purchase questions you may have: A play by play

A friend of mine was wondering whether to buy a Kindle or some ebook device, this mail conversation is what followed: (reproduced with permission)
My friend: "You have a Kindle, right?
Would you recommend I buy it? My main concerns are: it should be userfriendly (not too complicated) and it should be easy on the eyes - I am short sighted and my eyes strain when I read from a backlit screen.
One other factor is that I should be able to read non-purchased/downloaded books on it."
My reply: Long time no hearing from you - so glad you mailed me.
Let's get this out of the way : I *heart* my kindle. (that's why my blog is mostly dedicated to it and ebooks :D)

We should take this up point by point -
1. User friendly - really simple, too simple sometimes :)
Just drag and drop book from laptop to device, read book.
You can also check out Calibre: Paen to Kindle and Calibre

2. Backlit - The Kindle does not have a backlit screen.
Good points: Easy on the eyes, and very clear writing, just like on a page. No touchscreen means that the ink contrasts better with the white background.
Flipside: You need an extra light if it is dark (bedside one, or you can buy a cover from Amazon with a small light)

3. Non-purchased books - Of course you can! You download as usual, use Calibre as your library so it converts all formats (pdf, rtf, html etc) to mobi (Kindle format) so you can shift to the Kindle, reading the same book.

Follow-up Mail/Question from my friend: 
"I'm definitely getting it. Somehow I don't trust Infibeam's Pi, given that my priority is to make sure my eyes do't have additional strain. Did you buy the cover from amazon too, 'coz their covers cost half as much as the kindle itself! Was just wondering if there are cheaper options available."

(Deepali's note: You can read my post here for alternate covers - Skins for your ebook reader - Style over Substance)
Yes, I got the cover from Amazon - those are sturdy leather covers.
It was pretty expensive!! Try other options too...but make sure you plan for lights of some sort.
A bedside lamp, or a clip-on light of some kind is essential :)

*** 

That's All, Folks!

My word-for-word reply to questions you probably have too.

Inkmesh: The Ebook search engine and FREE Ebook by Ilona

The best website I've seen all week is http://inkmesh.com/
Crisp, clear search engine, dedicated to books - could this get any better?
Well, perhaps if you added features like these filters: Free, Below $1,  Below $5.
This is the easiest place I've found to find free ebooks.

Other filter choices: Amazon, B&N, and other retailers.
Even better, you can search by book type: Kindle, Sony, Kobo and more.  Screenshot below!

What you see at Inkmesh.com

Did you notice the "Free Baen Books" option up there? If you haven't heard of Baen before - here is why you should get free ebooks from Baen.com
I've already found one free book; with my recent Ilona Andrews mania, what else would have been my first search?
If you want to skip all these steps and download The Questing Beast by Ilona Andrews, here it is!
http://inkmesh.com/ebooks/questing-beast-ilona-andrews-ebook/?pc=0&qs=ilona+andrews

Ebook Prices - Variations across countries

I recently noticed something appalling - yet strangely, not shocking. Amazon differentially prizes items across different countries (not news, I knew they did this).

But an ebook I was trying to pre-order *ahem* Ilona Andrews *I've been raving about this series, Magic Slays FTW* was $2 more expensive when I tried to buy it vs. my husband purchasing it. We both have accounts registered in different countries, which probably accounts for this price change. But it burns anyway!

Related situation in France: Les Echos in France says that the French Parliament has unanimously voted to price all ebooks sold in France (whether imported or otherwise) at a fixed, standard price. Since France has already placed a fixed price on all paper books, this is a simple extension of their existing law.

Why are ebook laws so complicated? Shouldn't this be easier than selling a paper book?

If I'm buying a book on my laptop, paying taxes toward a given country, and the publisher in that country, at what point is the price difference too much?

Review: The Deadliest Bite by Jennifer Rardin

Why I picked it up:
I picked up the first Jaz Parks Urban Fantasy/Vampire book a while ago, and read a couple of books before I got a little bored.
Having noticed that the final book in the series (Book 8) was out, and on NetGalley, I decided to complete the series and then review it in toto.

Series Summary:
Jaz and Vayl are secret agents in the US Govt, assassinating who they are told to. Jaz is a spunky female assistant assassin (tongue twister!), while Vayl is the vampire, eternally hunting for his long-lost sons.
Over the first couple of books, they make friends with a Seer, a genius inventor, and an angel, amongst others. Jaz grows more powerful over the books, and new elements about the world they are in come to light - a battle between good and evil, the zone where Ghosts reside, and fake "Sensitives". We see some military action, as both Jaz and Vayl work for the CIA, while fighting their growing attraction for each other.

What I liked about The Deadliest Bite:
This is a definite "last book". Lots of ends are tied up and I saw a huge improvement in the writing flavor from the first. I thought this might be a trite vampire love story, but the characters are really strong and fiercely written and saves the book from falling into a stereotype.

Minus:
So many incidents/scenes in a book make it a little hard to remember what happened in the previous books, and so I'm left with a vague recollection of the earlier novels. Some of the technology (like Jaz's mechanical, smart, transforming cat) is too far-fetched for me to swallow, even in if it is military funded.

Aside: Very sad to note that the author passed away so early in her life.
This series is a SOLID B+, and Great when read separately with breaks between the novels.

I would recommend it to:
Ilona Andrews fans, Katie MacAllister readers, vampire novel readers :) *like, duh*

A Roald Dahl look at new e-devices

The mid-week (or early-week!) blues got you?
This adorable graphic from Unshelved is a great pick-me-up. It references Matilda, by Roald Dahl and her e-reader experience (hint: not good)!
While I'm an ebook fan, I totally understand and GET her experience.

Linked here for the rest of the comic: http://www.unshelved.com/2011-3-4
The art is by Aaron Renier from www.aaronrenier.com

Blogger Spotlight #5: Tiffany!

Introducing *drum-roll please*: Tiffany from A Cozy Reader's Corner Reviews

Tiffany's ereader: I actually got a Kindle for Christmas. 

A recent read: A Chesapeake Shores Christmas by Sherryl Woods

Who I am: I am a stay at home mom by day. My typical day is filled with the duties of mommyhood including bringing my oldest to school and back. When I am not taking care of things around the honest, or ignoring them... I am reading! If the book isn't great my house is cleaned faster!! At night I work for a call center as a member of our Work Force Management team. My job consist of making sure all calls are routed and being answered by agents promptly. We also make the schedules and do many reports on each of the agents. My job pays attention to detail and troubleshoots quickly and efficiently. Attached is a photo of my most recent Library Book Sale treasure!

Did you consider other readers in the market? 

I did. I looked at all readers, for me it came down to the Kindle because I feel it is simply the best and most widely accepted reader. I like the design and attributes it offers.


What's the top thing you like about it? 
 The price in comparison with what it offers. I like that everyone knows the kindle. Every book is made to work with the kindle.

My confession - ebooks vs. paper

After two dozen posts extolling the virtues of ebooks, I am finally going to write one praising paper books. 

My confession is: Rereading is easier on physical books!

Image From www.Gawker.com

My most recent hardback buy was Towers of Midnight by Brandson Sanderson and Robert Jordan, from the Wheel of Time series. This is the penultimate book in the series, and I was incredibly kicked to be able to get it on the day it released (as I was in the US of A at that time).

I completed this monster-sized novel on my birthday, one day and one night after it arrived, as it was an early arrival birthday gift. One really can’t get all the implications of such a busy book in so short a time, so I let everything simmer for a few weeks.

Last weekend, I decided to re-read the second half of the book…it felt great to be able to easily pick spots to slow down for, turning pages kept my momentum going. I've even taken to reading it for a few minutes every other day, just to re-read parts that I might have missed earlier. The pages feel great, with that still-stiff, only been read by one person in the world, feeling.

This is probably the only book that could have prompted this confession - I'm a little obsessed with the Wheel of Time series, as you might know.

I probably wouldn’t have read this again if I had only an ebook version – sad but true.

New to Wheel of Time?

Read this brief series review

You can read my review of the Towers of Midnight here

New to eBooks?

View

NetGalley and Scribd

I was recently introduced to NetGalley by a fellow Blogger on Twitter. She just happened to mention it, and I immediately turned to Google to get more info on it. Within minutes I created my personal account at NetGalley, and uploaded my review policy. It took me a couple of seconds to understand that perhaps I qualify as a "Professional Reviewer" - and it still makes me blush to say it!!

The other great site I will be linking to in a book giveaway next week, is Scribd. I was requested by an author to promote their currently free book on Scribd, and that giveaway is coming up on Monday.


I'm looking forward to getting a few ARCs and ebooks via NetGalley, and it is a party in my head right now - Free Books!! w00t!

Review: Carousel Tides by Sharon Lee

Carousel Tides by Sharon Lee

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Grade: A

Why I read it:

Carousel Tides piqued my interest when I read the first 10 chapters for free at www.Baen.com.

I have read nearly all the Sharon Lee and Miller books before, and enjoyed them immensely. Being eager for any more Liaden stories, I explored Webscriptions on Baen (this lets you buy the ebooks and packaged bundles of stories directly from Baen) - and signed up for an account.

Plus: I loved the heroine, Kate, and her changing attitude to her obligations at home. She is a magical powerhouse, but has elected to actively resign from her powers and position, instead attempting a normal life. We don't hear much about this, but her search for her missing grandma brings her back home.

The shield between the many worlds is wearing thin, and Kate is needed to stand Gaurdian for our world.

Characters: A very interesting, likeable character for Kate, I wanted more of this novel!

There were plenty of twists in the tale, adventures were had, and folks were rescued!

Minus: Not too many here - perhaps, a minor crib would be the story needed more depth to the secondary characters.

I would Recommend it to: Liaden fans (naturally), Urban Fantasy readers, Nora Roberts readers and my girlfriends who read romantic suspense. Also, folks who like strong female heroines.

View all my reviews

8 Publishing Trends of 2010

This blog runs about 2 posts a month on Publishing, and here are trends I've noticed from my research:

1. Amazon sells more eBooks than Hardcover books:  This was one of the earliest trends this year, based on Amazon's Q1 results. This trend accelerated in the later part of the year, selling 3 times as many books in the first half of the year, compared to 2009. Bringing me to..
   
2. Ebooks sales doubled from 5% of the overall books sold to closer to 10% of the books sold (Association of American Publishers). Ereader owners also read on average 3 more books each month than before.
3. E-readers Proliferated:       New e-readers entering India and Multiplying like Rabbits. Some estimated Christmas Day Kindle sales to be around a million units (Jeff Bezos said that this day sales was the largest ever in Kindle history). Kindle now is the #1 best-selling product on Amazon, surpassing Harry Potter #7. 
4. Reading on Mobiles and other Devices:       Reports from Apple iStore show that iBooks is one of their top downloads. B&N Nook has a desktop reading device, and of course several other great independent Mobile/notebook readers like Stanza are widely used.On Christmas, Apple's iBooks e-reader is the #1 most-downloaded free iPad app, while Amazon's Kindle app is #9.
5. Censorship: Several times this year, Amazon was in trouble for deleting books from Kindles, and for (perhaps accidentally) dropping GLBT books from their listings. 
6. Closing of indie bookstores: While my favorite bookstore in Bangalore still exists, news reports suggest a struggle to survive elsewhere. While Independent stores are probably the hardest hit, we should remember that Borders and other mainstream stores shut several outlets this year. Google eBooks launched with options for local retailers to sell, hopefully this helps keep folks in business.
7. Rise of YA: Inevitable, sustained for over two years and massive - this trend has resulted in more teens reading, and also a rise in adults reading Young Adult books.
8. An Aptara Survey of 600 publishers does a great dive into the impact of ebooks on Publishing: The main eBook production challenge facing publishers is eReader/content format compatibility issues, the same as in our first survey. Even with a nearly universal eBook format standard (EPUB), today's highly fragmented eReader market makes quality eBook production a moving target.
   

I referenced this list in parts, to flesh out some of my points, from Julie's Book Hooked Blog.

2011 Trend Spotting: Content is King: View
What do you think? Do you have any you would like to add?

Blogger Spotlight - Julie from Book Hooked Blog

Introducing: Julie from Book Hooked Blog

Fav Recent Read: Falling Home by Karen White

What e-reader do you own and how did you get it?

I have a basic Nook.  I did some last minute edits on a book for my pastor.  As a thank you, he gave me a very nice gift card to Barnes and Noble and I made a quick decision to purchase a Nook!

Julie's Favorite thing about the Nook?

It is so easy to travel with!  In the past I've been the person trudging through the airport with a 20 lb carry-on full of books.  I never know what I'll be in the mood for, so even for overnight trips I'll end up bringing 3-5 books just in case.  Having the Nook makes it MUCH easier to have a variety of books in my purse at all times.

Click to read on about Julie and her reading habits! Mail me if you want a spotlight of your own!

Publishing News: Amazon gives larger share of revenue on ebooks

News: Ebooks can now make more money for Publishers!
 

There are some qualifiers to this edict:

• Customers should be able to read the title on all Kindle devices and applications.
• Customers can read the title in all geographies for which the publisher has rights.

If your ebook falls under these rules (amongst others), then up to 70% of the income now goes to the publisher.
While ebook growth in sales has been phenomenal (the report stated 180% for the year) the total market share works out to $120 Million, Q3 2010 (IDPF Website).

This is still just under 10% for a Publisher, but the profit per ebook going up will bring some additional focus on this channel for sales and promotions.
(More on that later)

Read on:
http://bookpublishingnews.blogspot.com/2010/11/amazon-announces-70-percent-revenue.html

Review: Calico Pennants by David A. Ross

Grade: B+
Pages: Approx 275 (ebook ARC from Publisher)
In this award-winning novel, a weekend sailor shipwrecked in the South Seas eventually discovers the island's only other human inhabitant—a woman who bears an uncanny resemblance to 1930s lost flying ace Amelia Earhart.
Summary: The scenes shift between a newly minted sailor in Hawaii and the famous Amelia Earhart's cross-pacific journey for the first half of the book. After closely following her adventure across south-east Asia, Britain and other islands, she crash lands onto a  strange island in the middle of the ocean. Julian and Amelia meet here, across time and space, facilitated by a kooky and talkative parrot.
Overall: The primary driver of the tale is the well-scripted characterization - the action is fairly slow to start off. It does pick up as you keep reading, and draws one into a beautifully described sybaritic island-world. The run to the ending is strong and pretty fantastic!!
Plus: The scenes are very authentic in their emotions and reactions. I loved some of the lines in the book - I've quoted one of many I liked at the end of the post. The entire last around-the-world trip Amelia makes is stunningly researched, authentic and gripping. I would almost skim over the Julian bits to get back to her flight. The island scenes between the survivors are completely plausible, and the unveiling of the island's strangeness is a lot of fun to read. 
Minus: Initially, I didn't take to Julian's character - he didn't seem very much of a strong protagonist to me. However, the interaction between Amie and Julian is real and key to the rest of the book.
I would recommend it to: Alternate history buffs, Purdue graduates (Amelia and Purdue university had lots of ties - trivia: Purdue also was the first university to get an airport)
My fav Line:

"Perhaps there are no accidents", Amie speculated. "What if events and situations manifest out of our deepest feelings and desires?"

Black Friday Sale Roundup: Gone in 60 seconds

How many of you are getting/giving ereaders for Christmas or other occassions?

The Black Friday Sale on Amazon listed the older, Amazon Kindle 2 (for $89 ) - and sold out within Seconds!

Barnes & Noble had a similar sale on the Nook - the refurbished Wi-Fi Nooks were listed on eBay for $79, and later $99. The sale also included the refurbished 3G models for $119. The sale ended after a couple of days, having sold 6,777 Nooks in total.

Some reasons for the difference in the speed of sales (seconds vs. days) was the Amazon Kindle 2 Sale was on Black Friday, when buyers are madly refreshing their browsers for deals!
Still, gone in seconds?? My theories why -

• It was hugely publicized, and word spread via facebook, twitter, before blogs and newsfeeds could pick it up.

• The estimate is that half a million folks saw the update through these sites.

Let me mention here that we tried to buy a $139 WiFi Kindle for a friend 2 weeks ago, and Best Buy was out of stock, both the times we went. 

Tuesday (November 23rd) Amazon reported on their Facebook wall: “We had our biggest sales day ever for Kindle devices yesterday. Thank you, customers!”

What I want to know now is:  
How many readers are gifting/getting ereaders this season?

More info:
Kindle sale results in the news

Why I love the internet today

I can safely assume, dear blogger and reader, that you are fairly used to the online world.

There are naturally levels of familiarity and usage, but I spend about 80% of my awake time online, thanks to work and fun - I stream TV episodes online, read books online, play my music from on-demand sites or radio. This isn't unusual for some of you, I bet!

So why today to express my net-love?

Well, I'm am simply amazed at how much easier it has become to get the book I want, when I want it!

How have you used the internet today?