• Instead of trying to build a robot to do everything, it's still a largely manual process, using low-priced labor (think a trailer out in the boonies with a disabled retiree running the thing content to get paid by the piece, versus a young urbanite who won't stay in the job)
• Doesn't depend on convincing authors to take on a second distribution channel that could compete with their first. BN's business model is predicated on large book runs, so it was always an uphill battle to get their suppliers to get on board. Imagine iTunes could only sell 20% of the music on the market and now imagine you have a bookmaking robot taking up $20/sf floorspace with the same limitation.
• Books produced with the distributed process are indistinguishable from the mass-produced variety, making the choice to switch quite easy for customers, since they can't tell the difference (other than one is in stock and one isn't).
• An "Espresso" machine would be largely for printing titles the store wouldn't stock (there's a reason they don't stock them: they wouldn't sell that well if they did). My approach would be largely for printing titles the store can't keep in stock. BN isn't in the printing business and that's getting to be a larger Achilles heel for their business model.
• Instead of trying to build a robot to do everything, it's still a largely manual process, using low-priced labor (think a trailer out in the boonies with a disabled retiree running the thing content to get paid by the piece, versus a young urbanite who won't stay in the job)
• Doesn't depend on convincing authors to take on a second distribution channel that could compete with their first. BN's business model is predicated on large book runs, so it was always an uphill battle to get their suppliers to get on board. Imagine iTunes could only sell 20% of the music on the market and now imagine you have a bookmaking robot taking up $20/sf floorspace with the same limitation.
• Books produced with the distributed process are indistinguishable from the mass-produced variety, making the choice to switch quite easy for customers, since they can't tell the difference (other than one is in stock and one isn't).
• An "Espresso" machine would be largely for printing titles the store wouldn't stock (there's a reason they don't stock them: they wouldn't sell that well if they did). My approach would be largely for printing titles the store can't keep in stock. BN isn't in the printing business and that's getting to be a larger Achilles heel for their business model.