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Comment by GotNothing | Hacker News Reader

For $9.95 a month, I'd rather support my local library/bookstore. Unlike movies, where I could watch 5-6 on a really lazy Saturday, books take quite a bit more time. I'm a pretty regular reader and I'm lucky if I get through 2 books a month.

Based on: http://gawker.com/5971571/are-you-an-above+average-book-read...

I read about the average (outlier) person, so for $9.95 I'd rather own the one or two books I can read that month, which would cost close (give or take) to the same amount as they're offering.

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I read on my commute to/from work. Not sure about the # of books I finish a month, but I can say that I may be willing to "experiment" more with books I wouldn't have otherwise. No downside to read the first 3 chapters and then switch to another book, if you don't like it. I think, therefore, that it might be a nice DISCOVERY tool.

I could see a person wanting to use as a "Discovery" tool, that's a big reason I subscribe to Spotify.

However, Amazon offers samples of eBooks (most of them I believe) and they offer that service for free.

good point. The only issue with Amazon that I found was that the first sample chapter might be 5 pages long, so you don't really get a flavor of the book. I might be wrong though (maybe they now do it by total length rather than chapters)

my thoughts exactly. they're supposedly targeting the casual reader, but how many casual readers read more than 1 book a month? at one book a month the pricing model makes no sense. it's really at 4 books a month where it starts to look cheap, but 1 book a week is a very steep hill for most people.

reading is an active activity unlike tv or music which are inherently passive. IMO that makes a big difference in how much we can consume the medium.

I would say this is for those that can get through 4-5+ books a month (like me and others I know). Not for everyone, but I know many that would find this better than having an actual monthly book budget. Libraries also have similar programs for ebooks (or at least mine does).

Yup I discovered from a friend that my library has a similar ebook checkout program. I wonder how the terms and selections compare, since libraries seem to be doing an inept job at advertising this feature which could potentially just kill this startup

Friend of mine said recently "What about Netflix for books? Why doesn't it exist?"

I first pointed out libraries and then made exactly your point about consumption. People burn through TV show episodes or movies more than they do books. And on top of that, I'd say a broader set of the population watch TV/movies than read books, which makes for a smaller market.

I am currently part-way through 6-8 books. I haven't managed to finish one in about 12 months!

I think people not finishing their books it probably one of the stronger use cases of this though. You wouldn't have to buy 8 books only to not finish them, you could just read them on Oyster.

Though admittedly that doesn't cover the library counter point.

The books I'm reading now are 5.69 a book. If it's a long month or they are short books I can get through maybe two a month.

So while $9.95 is slightly cheaper, it just doesn't seem worth it to me. I'd rather pay more and keep adding to my book collection.

That's assuming they only stick to books. If they start carrying magazines/newspapers it'd be a viable platform.

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