From: Keith Plummer
To: ask_tim@oreilly.com
Subject: Why cover price?
Tim,
Why do you charge cover price if you are the publisher? What are the benefits of buying books from you when I can pay the same price or less and don't have to pay the outrageous shipping charge? I'm at the book store already buying something at a nearby store, so I'm not saving on gas.
Keith
Keith,
We sell books directly to our customers as a convenience, not to compete with our resellers. Any vendor who sells through retail sales channels has a conflict when it comes to direct sales. It's important to make books available directly for those customers who don't have access to a bookstore, or whose local bookstore doesn't carry the book a customer is looking for. But at the same time, we can't undercut the prices our resellers offer.
If you're looking for discounted prices, there are many online retailers who do discount books, and we're delighted to have you buy from them. Shop around and find the best deal.
At the same time, we're delighted to service you if you want to get your books directly from us.
As to the shipping charges, we actually lose a little bit of money on every book we ship. If you're at the local bookstore, by all means buy the book there.
-- Tim
