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Opinion: Bloomsbury's war on Asda

17.07.07 Neill Denny

Publishers frequently complain that retailers are becoming too powerful, charging them money for promotional slots, discounting their books wilfully and generally commoditising books. But until now, none has taken the ultimate sanction of delisting a retailer.

So full marks to Bloomsbury for having the backbone to stand up to Asda and pull Harry Potter from the supermarket shelves. Finally, a publisher putting its money where its mouth is.
That will be many publisher’s initial reaction on hearing this morning that Bloomsbury putting Asda on stop, but the argument is more complex than it first appears.

In fact, the row is not about pricing per se. Bloomsbury cite Asda’s statement, in which it accused the publisher of "attempting to hold children to ransom" over apparent high pricing as defamatory and the prime reason. But given the first Harry sold at a price of over 5p a page (223 pages for 11.99), and this final instalment works out at under 3p a page (17.99 for 608 pages), Asda’s case looks pretty thin. Indeed, many feel Bloomsbury has been the model of restraint on the pricing front.

Bloomsbury also says Asda owes it money, and will withhold the book until it is paid.  Accordingly, if the money is paid – and Asda says that the payment is being paid in full now – and the statement is withdrawn, it is possible that the book will still be on sale in Asda on Friday midnight. There is still time for a deal to emerge and negotiation are ongoing.

Asda would clearly look a touch foolish if it was a Harry-free zone on Friday night, but it can scarcely be sorry about the way the row has panned out so far, It has adopted its familiar pose as the consumer’s champion against the wicked over-pricing suppliers, and has timed the row for maximum pre-Potter publicity. It may even have incurred a loss on every book sold, so its absence may prove a blessing in disguise. However, if it still does receive the book, it may suffer lost sales as a result of customer uncertainty as to whether it has the book or not.

Bloomsbury certainly can regard events so far with some satisfaction. It has defended its principles, twisted Asda’s arm on late payments, and made a stand for Harry’s integrity.

Of course, for the wider reading public the whole exercise is baffling and a little unnerving, making it ever more obvious that the rrp printed on the back of books is a piece of fiction quite the equal of anything dreamt up by a novelist. The full cost of the scales falling from consumer's eyes since the demise of the net book agreement is yet to be calculated.

Neill Denny harry potter Bloomsbury Asda

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