Price Fixing
In Germany, book prices have been fixed (i.e., no discounting) for years. But that’s all changing. Read the article.
A few excerpts to whet your appetite:
“It was in the middle of nowhere, only 20,000 steel workers,” he said, “but we could order any book in Germany and have it within a day. The whole post-fascist idea was that we needed books, along with universities and schools, to fix society.”
If you want proof that a cultural divide separates Europe and America, the book business is a place to start.
“I feel relatively calm for the simple reason that here almost everyone agrees,” Mr. Rodig said. “We want to make sure that a large number of books can be produced and distributed in Germany.”
Why? I asked.
For a second he seemed baffled that I would even ask the question.
“Because we need them,” he answered.
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