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The issue of electronic e-rights has been brought to the fore once again, with the http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/jul/12/ebooks-publishing-deals-fair" target="_blank">Guardian reporting Tom Holland as saying current deals are "not remotely fair".
Speaking at the Romantic Novelists' Association's annual conference last week, the chair of the Society of Authors urged authors to push for "considerably higher" e-book royalties than the standard 25%. Holland said the digital market was "growing fast" and reiterated his view that once initial set-up costs are met, royalties should be split at least 50/50.
"Most publishers are insisting they should control e-book rights and this will be written into standard contracts. I think it's an entirely reasonable position to take, so long as the royalties and returns on ebooks are fair and proper and reasonable.
"If they are not, I suspect we may well find very big-name authors, such as JK Rowling or Dan Brown, will go their own way," said Holland.
"It's a danger publishers need to recognise and a danger for writers as well. If JK Rowling controls her own ebook rights [then] there's less money for her publisher to invest in new authors. We could face a situation of very big-name authors pulling the ladder up after them [and] we have a stake in seeing a healthy publishing industry."
He added: "We accept that publishers have been investing heavily in digital infrastructure and at the moment they are losing money on ebooks because sales are so low. I can sort of understand their reservations over higher royalties at the moment, but nevertheless a contract that lasts for the duration of copyright is a hugely long time.
"Publishers in negotiations with Amazon, or whoever, say they want two-year contracts because there's such flux, but at the same time are asking authors for the duration of copyright. It has to be wrong – it's not remotely fair," he said.
Katie Fforde, novelist and chair of the Romantic Novelists' Association, agreed that a 25% ebook royalty "would be perfectly fair if it was for two years, or a limited period, and then could be renegotiated".
The Samuel Johnson prize-winning historian Antony Beevor said the Society of Authors was "absolutely right". He added: "Publishers are suffering badly themselves [at the moment] but it's a bit like Tesco and the farmers – the author as the producer will be squeezed the most."