Sometimes you are buying more than just a book and human expertise still has a value. I'll give you an example, I was very pleased to see a local music store flourishing mid pandemic, as I feared they might go under. I purchased an instrument knowingly at a considerable markup because they had a ton of knowledge I needed and I was able to ask many questions. I know that if I decided to go in and ask all of those same questions but then instead of buying it at Art's Music, I decide to find the lowest bidder online, it is only a matter of time before Art and his expertise disappear from the market. I'm afraid there aren't enough people supporting Art to keep human expertise relevant these days. Amazon may provide a very good service now but once all competition is gone what incentive is there to provide the same level of service?
> Amazon made provide a very good service now but once all competition is gone what incentive is there to provide the same level of service?
If a single business comes to dominate an entire industry, that's generally handled by anti-trust regulatory action.
I mean, I agree that a single monopoly that no longer cares for consumer preferences would seem like a bad thing; we wouldn't want any one company, e.g. Amazon.com, completely dominating the field to the exclusion of all others.
Though I dunno if old-fashion book stores would necessarily be the alternative. Or if the book-industry'll maintain its importance, even under Amazon.com, as other forms of media seem to be developing.
