The agency model is a pricing strategy used by publishers to sell e-books. In this model, the retailer (such as Amazon) acts as an agent on behalf of the publisher, and sets the price for each e-book title that it sells. The retailer then pays the publisher a wholesale price for each copy sold, which is typically set at 50% or more off the suggested retail price. This means that the consumer ends up paying the same amount as they would if they were buying a physical book - but with no additional cost to the publisher or author. The agency model has been widely adopted by major publishers in response to Amazon's attempts to set its own prices for e-books, and is seen as a way of maintaining control over pricing and distribution channels.