EB’s post this week Confessions of A Kindle Addict regarding her experiences
with buying and reading books on her new Kindle got me wondering about what we
are willing to pay for entertainment and why.
I admit up front that I have more questions than answers;
I’m looking for our readers’ help.
Depending on how fast you read a book, it probably provides
three to six hours of entertainment. I’ll use the lower bound to be
conservative. Depending on the price of the book, this averages to between
$0.00 (for free downloads) to $5.00/hr. for current best sellers sold
electronically (and only slightly more for the hardcover version). Once you own
the reading device, there are no outside costs to downloading an e-book other
than keeping your reader charged.
The closest professional football team to my southern home
is the Jacksonville Jaguars. You can get a ticket for the cheap seats for $55.
Ignoring the extra costs of getting to the stadium and parking, this translates
into about $18/hr. (one hour clock time, but three hours duration from kickoff
to final tick of the game clock). Of course you can pay almost five times more
for the best seats. This is for a team with a 1-8 record.
But since they’re our local team, we can watch the game at
home for free. That means it’s not watching the football game per se that we
are willing to pay for. The $55 must be for something else. Perhaps it reflects
the value of being part of a crowd. In fact, I seem to recall Sister Sledge’s
“We are family” rocking more than one basketball arena.
If not buying the feeling of extended family, maybe it’s purchasing
bragging rights: “I remember when I was…” As evidence for this theory, look at
prices people pay for attending the Super Bowl or NCAA men’s basketball finals.
Clearly what people are willing to shell out has little to do with
entertainment value and much to do with something else. I suspect it’s bragging
rights.
Which brings me back to books. When we buy a book from the
author at a book signing, we pay full price. Is it the signature we’re paying
extra for, or the bragging rights?
And did millions of people read The Da Vinci Code because it
was a good bang for their entertainment dollar or because it was “THE” book of
the moment to read and so added to their personal esteem in some manner?
I’m writing myself to the conclusion that much of what we
spend on “entertainment” has little to do with the actual entertainment value
and more to do with our feelings. Have I convinced you, or am I way off track?
~ Jim
