ISBN numbers are used to catalog books in libraries and collections and it's uncertain whether or not there is any advantage to having one on your ebook, especially if you also have a print book which will have an ISBN by default.
The ISBN number is used to generate the barcode and price, properly identify and list your book, and attribute each sale to you.
The ISBN number is used to create the barcode, but the number and the barcode are two separate things.
Not exact matches
Specifically, with an
ISBN number and an adoption year for each textbook
used in each subject area and grade level, it would
be straightforward to put together a panel of textbook adoptions statewide.
An
ISBN is a unique
number used by libraries, bookstores, etc. to identify a product such as a book, CD, DVD, or similar product.
An
ISBN is a 13 - digit
number used to identify books and similar items.
The
ISBN is an international
number, so it can
be used in the USA, UK, and worldwide.
Additional fees may
be incurred for the purchase of an
ISBN number with Bowker (for US Customers), account set up with Ingram Spark ($ 49 per setup or change) and for the purchase of your book proof and any book copies you want to
use for marketing and sales purposes (costs vary per book but generally $ 4 - $ 6 + shipping).
The 10 - digit
ISBN number format has
been in
use as the standard for books since 1970, however a restructuring of the
ISBN system required all new books to
use the new 13 - digit format.
For me, stickler for proper word
use that I
am, it
's about the misappropriation of terminology (seriously, if you don't own your
ISBN number and have granted rights to someone else, you
are no more — and no less — independent than a commercially - published author) and the
use of euphemisms — trying to escape the negative implications of something by calling it something else.
So if distributors and retailers stop
using ISBN numbers, the only reason remaining to
use one
is is because publishers still
use them.
Use the free ISBN feature on Smashwords and Kobo and use the free tracking numbers (which are like ISBNs) for Kindle and B
Use the free
ISBN feature on Smashwords and Kobo and
use the free tracking numbers (which are like ISBNs) for Kindle and B
use the free tracking
numbers (which
are like
ISBNs) for Kindle and B&N.
Learn what an
ISBN (International Standard Book
Number)
is and what they
're used for.
I have no financial relationship with LightningSource, and I have never
been a client of theirs (although several of my clients have worked with them), but I do appreciate the fact that the company distributes through Ingram; insists that you
use your own imprint and
ISBN number (they don't offer you any other option); doesn't require exclusivity; and — last time I checked — charges only about $ 75 to set up an account.
Use the free ISBN feature on Smashwords and use the free tracking numbers (which are like ISBNs) for Kindle and B
Use the free
ISBN feature on Smashwords and
use the free tracking numbers (which are like ISBNs) for Kindle and B
use the free tracking
numbers (which
are like
ISBNs) for Kindle and B&N.
The Bookland EAN symbol
is the most widely
used bar code format in the publishing industry as it encodes the
ISBN number and can also include the price.
Amazon
is the only place that
uses a Mobi file... Amazon has their own
numbering system... therefore your Mobi file does not need a separate
ISBN.
Also,
is it okay to
use the
ISBN number that Smashwords provided and still retain ownership of my work?
Originally, both places let me
use the same
ISBN number, as I
was selling it at the same price, and from my publishing company, White Whisker Books.
The
ISBN (International Sales Book
Number) is a 13 - digit product number used by bookstores, publishers, libraries, internet retailers and other supply - chain participants for ordering, listings, sales records, and stock co
Number)
is a 13 - digit product
number used by bookstores, publishers, libraries, internet retailers and other supply - chain participants for ordering, listings, sales records, and stock co
number used by bookstores, publishers, libraries, internet retailers and other supply - chain participants for ordering, listings, sales records, and stock control.
What I don't get (as my previous book
was published through a publisher)
is if I
am allowed to do sell my own book and give away a flip book version when it
is also
being sold through amazon, and whether the solution
is that I should I
use my own
ISBN number for all versions of the book, or a different one for my free download book?
I would just point out that not all indies buy Bowker
ISBNs as many
use CreateSpace's or Amazon's ASINs for e-books, so the
number of books indie pubbed in the US
is probably much higher than that?
An
ISBN is just a reference
number to
be used for indexing.
In fact, the
ISBN numbers can also
be used to search online for the specific title.
Over the course of 2014, 30 % of all e-books
being purchased in the U.S. do not
use ISBN numbers and
are basically invisible to the industry's official market surveys and reports; all the
ISBN - based estimates of market share reported by Bowker, AAP, BISG, and Nielsen
are totally incorrect.
Lest this mislead anyone as to the state of self - publishing, it
's worth noting that this information refers to authors who purchased their own
ISBN numbers — either on their own or as part of a project them completed with the help of a publishing service provider — as opposed to
using a free Amazon - assigned
number.
«30 % of the ebooks
being purchased in the U.S. do not
use ISBN numbers,» writes Howey — a statistic that forces us to question the validity of all data that comes out of
ISBN tracking.
Avoiding the purchase and
use of an
ISBN number for their published work (if they
are US - based) seems to many to
be another opportunity to cut cost.
All it needs for SKUs
are the
ISBNs the ebooks come with and a few assigned SKU
numbers for its other goods, like readers, which it will assign
using the EAN - 13 standards (which have the same format as
ISBNs).
Annual pricing
is based on the
number of title records (
ISBNs) your organization creates or maintains
using the Webform.
Most larger vendors, in fact, would prefer that you
use their internal, stock
ISBNs for tracking purposes, as those
numbers are easier to document within their own systems.
That
's why it
's also important to get an
ISBN number for every book so that it can
be easily located for a customer in Books In Print (from Bowker, the official
ISBN agency for the United States), an online bibliographic catalog that bookstores and libraries
use to research and locate available books.
ISBN numbers have many
uses and
are a big convenience.
Using the same
ISBN number communicates they
are the same.
This
is fine for self - publishers but larger publishers will want to
use ISBNs linked to their own
number range and publisher identifier.
The
ISBN identifies your book in distribution catalogues; buyers
use it to order your book; online retailers
use your
ISBN to create product pages; and tracking services like Book Scan
use your
ISBN to track sales
numbers and locations (If you hope to snag a traditional publishing deal, this
is important: the house
is likely to check previous sales before making an offer.)
An
ISBN number is also necessary, either
using one assigned by Amazon or Smashwords, or securing your own.
Nevertheless, the publisher may wish to assign unique
ISBNs to different formats if they
are tracking and reporting sales by format (not unlike how and why a serial
number is used).
Having already allocated an
ISBN number to a book & successfully uploaded the book information onto the Bowker Identifier website, if I
were to add «written and illustrated by» above my author name on the front cover, would I have to count this as a second edition and therefore need to
use a new
ISBN number?
To my understanding, regular
ISBN's
is a thirteen digit
number beginning with the 13: and the ten digit
number, beginning with 10: can
be used for an Ebook.
You will also
be able to order the book from your local bookstore by
using the
ISBN number (
ISBN: 978 - 0990995227).
My biggest issue
is with the
ISBN number — buy on my own or
use the what CS supplies.
Three hundred dollars for 10
ISBNs you can
use for your entire series
is a lot less than the
numbers being discussed in these comments.
ISBN numbers are crucial to identifying unique publications for sale via official book distribution channels and typically authors
are charged a fee for their
use.
I always
use the
ISBN number so there
is no room for confusion as to which book you
're trying to add.
You can and «Should»
use the existing
ISBN number that you have, just as long as there
are no major changes in the book.
Any stats that try to claim market share, or industry growth
using Bowker's
ISBN reporting for eBook
numbers,
are meaningless.
Some people say you need an
ISBN for each type of ebook (epub, mobi), but as long as it
's the same text in that version,
use the same
ISBN so that sales
numbers are counted together.
Createspace offers you a free
ISBN number that you
are free to
use.
You can request an
ISBN number (the unique 10 digit
number that
is used to order and sell you book) yourself from R.R. Bowkers (see Resources below).