New books and used books and backlists, oh my...

Publishers Weekly is doing a multi-part series on the effect of used books in the publishing industry. Recently, big name publishers have been speaking out against the affects of used books on new book sales. A few years back, Amazon went blue-buttons-blazing into the used book market, letting a perspective customer opt to "buy used" instead of new at big (sometimes) savings. Authors were outraged, saying it was cutting into sales. The Authors Guild spoke out against the practice, but Amazon did not blink, mainly because in 2002, 23% of their U.S. orders were for used goods, up from 4% the previous year.

The PW article surmises that the book industry will follow in the shoes of the text-book industry, where these days, 30-40% of the college book sales are used. So, assuming that the Internet has changed the face of the book industry, what changes could be expected?

From the article:

"In trade books, some publishers say they have noticed slower reorders of backlist and older hardcover titles, especially fiction and some book club picks. Others see an effect on new titles. Discussing his company's results in July, Simon & Schuster president Jack Romanos said used books are contributing to softness in backlist sales. "It's an issue worth watching," he commented. "We're hearing that term around here more and more.""

Now the issue here is that backlist sales are a publisher's cash cow. Especially if your name is Danielle Steel or Nora. So, theoretically, profit margins would decrease, because the profit risk is higher for No-Name Suzy Writer, than it is for, say, JK Rowling. A decrease in the number of titles printed? Perhaps.

It'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out. Industries are changing these days. Music (iTunes), Television (on-demand, TIVO), and it makes sense that publishing will change as well.