[BeetleB]

I, too, was once naive and thought that the price of goods is largely determined by the cost of production.

But as anyone who has taken Econ 101 knows, the price is based on what people are willing to pay for it. The cost of production merely dictates whether it is viable to sell in the market.

If most people are willing to pay $10 for an ebook, when the hardcopy is also $10, then $10 is what they'll sell it for.

[lokar]

You might argue that the convenience of an ebook would make people willing to pay more

[BeetleB]

Whatever the rationale: People will pay what people are willing to pay. If the price is too high, competition should bring it down. The price clearly wasn't too high.

When I purchase a book, I decide how much I'll pay based on what the book will do for me. I'll get the same entertainment/info whether it is printed or electronic. For some types of books I prefer printed, so I won't pay much for the ebook. For fiction, I prefer electronic (already have too many physical books in the house), so I'll happily pay for it.

Of course, smart people just use libraries :-)