"Scott - Even if only one person reads book from library it lowers the sales - without libraries people would buy more books. Frank explained to me that library has permission and pays fee to do it."
Even though it seems like common sense, I'm not sure.
For the people who go to the library because they can't afford to buy books, the above is trivially untrue. They won't buy if the price is other than free.
At the other end, people who deeply love reading and books and who do have money are likely not buying fewer books because of the library. It seems to me they might buy different, (ie - what the library doesn't have) and *more,* because whatever they get from the library spurs their interest in acquiring more.
The only class of readers who might buy fewer books would be casual readers who want the new, hot novel and, once they've read it, are done for the time being.
It's the reason I tend not to worry about, or feel guilty about, making mix cds for friends.
If they don't know an artist, there's no way for it to be a lost sale. Even though a mix cd given to a friend clearly violates copyright, it's all upside for the record companies - because potential customers are being created.
s.
Even though it seems like common sense, I'm not sure.
For the people who go to the library because they can't afford to buy books, the above is trivially untrue. They won't buy if the price is other than free.
At the other end, people who deeply love reading and books and who do have money are likely not buying fewer books because of the library. It seems to me they might buy different, (ie - what the library doesn't have) and *more,* because whatever they get from the library spurs their interest in acquiring more.
The only class of readers who might buy fewer books would be casual readers who want the new, hot novel and, once they've read it, are done for the time being.
It's the reason I tend not to worry about, or feel guilty about, making mix cds for friends.
If they don't know an artist, there's no way for it to be a lost sale. Even though a mix cd given to a friend clearly violates copyright, it's all upside for the record companies - because potential customers are being created.
s.