The Coalition for Cheaper Books...

  • Believes customers in Australia pay too much for books
  • Advocates an open market,leading to lower prices quicker availability
  • Supports removal of restrictions on parallel importation of books
  • Argues the current policy can't be justified in an era of e-commerce

Tag Archive | "The Coalition For Cheaper Books"

Coalition For Cheaper Books And Australian Booksellers Association Call For Reform Of Parallel Importation Rules

Thursday, November 5, 2009

2 Comments

The Government is now considering the recent Productivity Commission Report recommending the removal of parallel importation protection on books. This system was last modified in 1991, when the 30 and 90 day rules were introduced. Under these rules a publisher establishes their protection from parallel importation of a book if they publish it in Australia [...]

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FAQ – What is to stop booksellers importing thousands of remaindered books from overseas and flooding the market?

Thursday, June 11, 2009

1 Comment

There are a number of reasons why that won’t occur. Firstly and most importantly Australian consumers wont demand such remaindered books. If consumers don’t want them booksellers won’t order them. Australians will continue to prefer Australian printed and published books which will also be more competitively priced. Cheaper good product will easily compete with remaindered products.

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FAQ – But why should Australians give up territorial copyright if the US and the UK don’t?

Thursday, June 11, 2009

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Territorial copyright will still exist. Australian authors will continue to sell their rights to Australian publishers for Australian publication and in most cases those Australian publishers will sell most if not all of the copies of the book in question, sold in Australia.  What will be different with parallel importation is the publishers will not have [...]

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FAQ – Won’t this lead to a flood of cheap American books?

Thursday, June 11, 2009

1 Comment

Why would it? It hasn’t in New Zealand. The Australian Publishers Association’s own consultants have stated that there has been little actual parallel importing in New Zealand since the restriction on it was lifted over ten years ago. Australian’s will still want and demand quality versions of the books they love. They will still demand Australian [...]

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Media Reports

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

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Read what various national media has been reporting about cheaper books: Allan Fels, the former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and Fred Benchley, former editor of The Australian Financial Review have their say as well as outlining how everyone will benefit from cheaper books.    Bob Carr, former premier of NSW and board member of [...]

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Book Prices In Australia – Our Perspective

Thursday, May 7, 2009

9 Comments

In late 2008 the Federal Government asked the Productivity Commission to review the provisions of the Copyright Act restricting parallel importation of books into Australia. These provisions, which only apply to books, prevent the importation of legally copyrighted versions of books from other countries. They establish a closed market and mean publishers in Australia are not [...]

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