Business World reports that HarperCollins owner Rupert Murdoch took a swipe at Amazon’s $9.99 e-book price, boosting Macmillan’s lonely public stand against the retailer’s rigid pricing tactics. “We don’t like the Amazon model of selling everything at USD 9.99,” he said, calling for a renegotiation of Harper’s deal with Amazon, and Amazon said it’s ready to hear what he has to say.

Murdoch acknowledged that he stands to lose money by opposing $9.99. “They pay us the wholesale price of USD 14 or whatever we charge,” he said, referring to the wholesale price that Amazon might pay to Harper for a $28.00 e-book. “But I think it really devalues books and it hurts all the retailers of the hard cover books.” Amazon takes a loss on such transactions but has used the loss-leader strategy to gain a dominant position for its Kindle e-book reader. It’s worked so far but publishers have worried that a day of reckoning will come in the form of a demand by Amazon that publishers lower their wholesale prices to accommodate that $9.99 retail price.

Though he didn’t refer to Macmillan, Murdoch’s position mirrors Macmillan’s and clearly indicates that the new e-book retail model introduced by Apple as part of its iPad tablet rollout has united the publishing community. “Apple, in its agreement with us, which has not been disclosed in detail, does allow for a variety of slightly higher prices,” Murdoch coyly said.

For background, read Publishing’s Weekend War: 48 Hours that Changed an Industry.

Richard Curtis

(c) Reuters

Caroline Reidy (right), publisher of Simon & Schuster, has e-circulated a policy statement about online piracy. Notable is a description of S&S’s relationship with Scribd, which she described as “a location where pirated works were easily found.” Scribd has made an earnest effort to become respectable, occasioning Reidy to say “Our decision to sell ebooks at Scribd came only when we were satisfied that they would both make our works more available to online consumers and also diligently and innovatively combat piracy on their site.”

S&S’s anti-piracy initiative follows on the heels of one recently announced by Hachette, which has gone so far as to engage a company to monitor instances of piracy of its books. See Hachette Hires Anti-Piracy Hammer.

We don’t think S&S will complain if we pirate its statement in full, reprinted below, but from here on in we’ll be very careful about using S&S text. We don’t want to walk the plank with Caroline Reidy’s sword at our backs.

Richard Curtis
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SIMON & SCHUSTER STATEMENT CONCERNING ONLINE PIRACY

Online piracy of digital books is a matter of growing concern. Even as Simon & Schuster explores and partakes in the many new and exciting opportunities presented by the digital world, at the forefront of our digital strategy is a firm commitment to battling piracy.

Since Simon & Schuster began publishing ebooks more than ten years ago, the security of our authors’ copyrights has been a primary concern in every digital partnership or project we have undertaken. Unquestionably, however, as the digital world has expanded and ebooks have become more popular, the rise of peer-to-peer file sharing and sites that feature user-posted content has led to a higher level of unauthorized posting and sharing of our copyrighted content. Responding to these evolving threats requires vigilance and innovation.

We work to stop online piracy as promptly as we can. The Simon & Schuster legal department acts quickly to notify site operators and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) where piracy occurs, by issuing copyright infringement notices both for electronic versions of our books and for the sale of unauthorized physical editions at online booksellers. These notices generally have the desired result with respect to materials posted and hosted on third-party sites. Peer-to-peer file sharing presents more difficult challenges, but we are working to take advantage of evolving strategies to deter this kind of piracy as well.

More broadly, we seek to combat this situation with the wide range of tools at our command, including doing everything we can to create a robust marketplace where consumers can legally purchase the books they want in electronic formats. We have, for example, recently entered into an arrangement with Scribd, an online document site, to sell Simon & Schuster ebooks at their site. This follows a period in which Scribd attracted much negative publicity as a location where pirated works were easily found. Our decision to sell ebooks at Scribd came only when we were satisfied that they would both make our works more available to online consumers and also diligently and innovatively combat piracy on their site.

We are also working with our colleagues at other publishing houses, via the Association of American Publishers’ Online Piracy Working Group, to share information and best practices on an industry-wide basis.

As long as there have been publishers, there have been scofflaws who see fit to deprive authors of their livelihood. Enforcement is by its very nature an imperfect science. But as the potential for this kind of behavior is amplified in the digital world, keeping our content secure, enforcing our copyrights, and creating a robust marketplace for easily accessible, reasonably priced content will be the pillars upon which we build our future as a digital publisher.

As we move forward in these endeavors, the help of readers, authors, booksellers and concerned citizens will be critical. We ask that if you see Simon & Schuster books illegally posted online, you please bring this to our attention and we will review the matter and take prompt and appropriate action. We will need certain specific information in order to act effectively, and have provided an online form that may be used to notify us of any instances of abuse or infringement.

We hope you find this information helpful and thank you in advance for your help.

Hard on the heels of multibillion dollar losses at HarperCollins’s parent company News Corporation, CEO Brian Murray circulated a memo stating that the “Collins” half of the name was to be shut down, its president and publisher Steve Ross was departing, and the staffs of both companies would be reshuffled and reintegrated. Lisa Gallagher, senior v-p and publisher of another trade division, William Morrow, was also asked to leave. The story was broken in an article by Jim Milliot on Publishers Weekly’s online newsletter.

Murray’s memo said,

“Given the continued uncertainty in the market and soft revenues for the company, we need to take further action to align our cost basis with expected revenues,” Murray wrote. “I have asked each division to evaluate their business and begin the process to meet this goal. Unfortunately, in some HarperCollins divisions, implementing these plans will result in a reduction in workforce.”

The Turk has not left the building: more cuts are expected. What will become of the HarperCollins name and logo is anyone’s guess. It’s the least of the company’s worries.

RC