What Fools these Muggles Be….
Posted By Kathleen David on July 19, 2007
This is not a spoiler entry for either the book being released Saturday or the film that came out last week. This is about something that has disturbed me about the publishing industry that is being brought into the harsh light of day because of a book, a publisher, and a movie studio.
There is an article in Boston Globe a couple of days ago (OK over a week ago, but I have been rather busy) about a letter that is going out from Warner’s legal to various bookstores and other Harry Potter events warning them with legal action if they go ahead with their plans for their book release party. Now when one agrees to sell Harry Potter, one has to sign a rather complicated contract that included the following Please ensure that you keep to our policy: that the book marketing campaign should be separate and distinct from the Warner Bros. film campaign and licensed merchandise programs Short version render to Scholastic what is Scholastic’s and to Warner Brothers that which is Warner Brother’s.
Once signing the contract you have agreed to use book only promotional material. This is kind of hard since the movie came out last week and most bookstores have a TON of Order of the Phoenix that they need to move now and how better than during the release of the new book. You also can not charge a fee for your event even if the money is going to charity. There were a number of stores that were doing events in association with other merchants of Harry Potter stuff (some of it licensed and some of it not) which have decided not to go ahead with their events.
I can understand from the licensing point of view why they (being Warner Brothers and Scholastic) are being so heavy handed. To hold onto to trademarks and copyright, they have to be able to prove that they are making sure that they don’t let others profit off of their intellectual property. Having watched both my husband and a number of friends lose money due to the actions of others, I really can sympathies.
But the people who are being screwed over in this legal paper storm are not the big chain stores who have the resources and the money to make Potter Parties but the small local bookseller. And there in is my problem with this draconian policy. It was the independents that first promoted Potter. It was the independents that saw the potential for Potter Parties and promotion. Harry Potter did not become an instant success that some think it did. It was hand selling by booksellers that turned into a word of mouth campaign that turned into a phenomenon. These same people are being told that they really no longer matter in the grand scheme of things which is really sad. Since there would be no movies if it had not been for the independent bookshop. Scholastic would not be making money hand over fist on these books. Warner Brothers would not be seeing the profits that they have been seeing from the films which have taken in almost more money than the entire Bond franchise.
And it is not like any bookstore is making a ton of money off of this book. If anything many stores are going to lose money because of the deep discounts that the books are being sold at. They are looking at this book of a way to get someone into the store in hopes that they will buy something besides the last Hogwarts book and many will. If they had made a few more dollars on Saturday, would that have been such a bad thing? Independent bookstores are a rare breed these days. Why shut them down and lose the very thing that promoted this book to prominence in the first place? The publisher and the movie studios need the independent booksellers. If they all go away, who is going to help them create the next Harry Potter?
I am grateful that I will not be camping out at midnight for the book but will be getting it probably on the way to vacation.
I will eventually buy the last book. However I won’t be queuing up at soon as the shops open to get it, nor have I pre-ordered it. I did the same thing when the last 2 or 3 came out. I suppose you get to an age where media hype can actually have the opposite effect than that intended. This whole hullaballoo about embargoes etc is enough to make me buy the new Ruth Rendall instead.
Yeah, I know, I’m turning into a cranky old woman.
Megan
I actually work for a store that not only is selling the book but preselling it as well. (and we were berated if we didn’t do enough presells of it). Thankfully we’re not opening at midnight to sell them (which shocked me…we did it for a video game within the past year and we open early every time we get a new shipment of Wiis in).
I feel bad for the little bookstores though….they’re so few and far between. But the first place i ever heard of Harry Potter was Rosie O’Donnell! I think a lot of folks read the book because of her talking about it so much for so long. Doesn’t matter what you might think of the lady in any other way…she was doing things for books before Oprah ever did;)
Did i personally buy a presell of the book this time? nope…am i going to run out and get it the first couple days its out? nope. Will i get it from Waldens (the only store i can get to that sells books other than KMart and the grocery store and,of course the store i work for…which really doesn’t cater to folks with a reading level about age 12)with the discount price. Sure will….making barely above minimum wage its the only way to afford a hard cover that’s not on the scratch and dent rack;)
And yes, this is a Waldens that rarely has any of Peter’s books and you can bet i’m always bustin’ ’em on it! Sometime i feel like i should make a picket sign and march up and down demanding Doctor Who and Peter David;)
(and to use something i love from these blogs… I very grateful for the pricing of the new Doctor Who books…hard cover and still reasonably priced!)
Whether you’re on the minimum wage or not, if you can get staff discount, you’re mad not to. The money you save could buy the cappuccino or chocolate that you’re going to enjoy while reading.
Megan
As a library, we received our shipments yesterday, but they are literally under lock and key even to the librarians. Unfortunately, we’re closed on Saturdays in the summer, so no one will get them until Monday! I am a hopeless nerd in the extreme; I nearly died reading 5 cover to cover in one day, and I plan to have 7 finished by Saturday night. We buy three copies, and our house looks like a study hall with an hourly accounting of what page who’s on, and the slower readers taking over when the others take a break. We have no local independent bookstores; they’ve tried three times, but they don’t last.
And no, our Walden’s doesn’t carry Peter’s books either – they’re “too new, try Borders.” (Since when does Walden’s only carry “old books”?)
OH gawd, i only wish i got a decent discount at our store. i got a better discount when i sold clothes! really, the discount is hardly more than the state sales tax. better to get it at 40% off at Waldens;)
I never heard that about new books and old books at Waldens..will have to ask the guys when i next go in. Its really small (in size and staff) so i know almost everyone by face as well they know me.
I love the idea of the house as a study hall as everyone reads! A guy where i work took the entire week off to read the book…well,he wanted the week off anyway and is going to enjoy the book. Me? I just poke along with the reading…the only thing i’ve ever read more than 100pages of in one day (that i wasn’t ready for school!) was probably Stephen King and long ago when my eyes were young and there was no internet:)
Enjoy everyone!