Should readers of ebooks be taxed to subsidize stores that sell printed books?

rexblog.com

10 points·apress··6 comments

Bastiat would certainly loved such a question.

Even I can invent a lot similar questions, like: _Should married couples be taxed to subsidize night clubs?_

That should really read "should the internet be taxed to subsidize brick and mortar retailers?" because that's the next step if the e-book publishing model is taxed.

I'm all for it on one solitary condition; no taxation without representation. All brick and mortar retailers must carry all the costs for my ebooks to be sold as real books in their stores, including a small inventory in all their stores ensuring that the hardcopy is always available for any customer to buy at any time.

I think it's entirely fair. If publishers and book stores want to be paid by ebook consumers, then the consumers should have a reasonable expectation for access to any and all hardcopy versions of any ebook they could otherwise buy from a major reputable ebook retailer (AKA amazon) and have no expectation to wait for a copy to be mail-ordered in.

First off, and I write as somebody who is about to walk to a bookstore, No.

Second, trust me, Amazon is about as shy as John Rockefeller when it comes to squeezing suppliers.

I'd argue we are already being taxed if they charge us the same price for kindle vs print.

I believe that's an issue with Apple though.

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