Comments on: What Will It Take For International E-Book Markets To Take Off?

By: Tina Folsom, Author

Tina Folsom, Author — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 01:51:45 +0000

I really enjoyed this article. It gave me a lot data I was looking for.

I think there are definite opportunities for English language authors in those markets. With so few titles available in foreign languages, authors savvy enough to get their books translated, will be able to make a name for themselves.

I’ll have my first books (romance novels) coming out in German, Spanish, and French in November this year, with more titles to follow next year. Sure, sales might be slow at the beginning, but when I have a dozen books in each language, readers will take notice. There’s little else out there at this point. But quality is still very important: a good translator is a must, a foreign language editor essential, and a proof reader as well as beta readers (if you don’t speak the language yourself) important.

Tina Folsom, Romance Author, San Francisco, USA

By: Reykjavik

Reykjavik — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 02:10:25 +0000

So why is it that e-book piracy isn’t that big a problem in the west, with supposedly crackers of similar skill present here? Cultural differences? There is a problem here, but it’s nowhere on the scale of what we’ve seen in music or video.

By: Piotr Kowalczyk

Piotr Kowalczyk — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 13:02:12 +0000

Availability of devices is not an issue.
Kindles are available in 177 countries. In many of them they are the
cheapest ereading devices, even with shipping costs. Same with iPad.

The real problem is that neither Amazon nor Apple offer content in different languages via their native channels.

So, for instance in Poland, Kindle is said to be the most popular
ereading device. In Kindle Store there are 100 Polish language books.
Polish ebookstores offer more than 10,000 books.

You either own a famous device with no content or have access to
content from a more expensive and not-so-cool device offered by a local
ebookstore.

More on this: http://ebookfriendly.com/2011/08/19/international-content-for-kindle-missed-opportunity/

By: Bookarest

Bookarest — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 02:52:39 +0000

“Closed loop”? Sorry, there is no such thing. We are happy to sell hard books in Eastern Europe because once ereaders invade here our young people will crack any DRM code and there will be no more book business. Probably for you either, see also Internet.

By: Reykjavik

Reykjavik — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:25:53 +0000

Was recently in Eastern Europe and the problem publishers mentioned there is rampant piracy. Unless one of the “closed loop” vendors (Amazon, Apple, etc.) does a big local language push in those markets, there’s not an easy way to buy DRM-enabled e-books, even though there are plenty of reading platforms available.