Marcus King of Titan's Entertainment Cafe in Battle Creek, Michigan read Rembert Parker's remarks regarding the availability of PDF versions of game releases (see "Rembert Parker of Reader Copies on PDF Game Products") and responds:

Recently, my thoughts on the trend of PDF versions of books being given away with purchase of the printed version was characterized as being such that were "on the potential threat of pdf's."  Uh, that is NOT what I was saying.

Here is what I was trying to convey.  I am in favor of the various publishers--such as Margaret Weis Productions, Green Ronin and others--allowing retailers to sell a printed version of a book and give that buyer free access to the PDF version.  It is a move by publishers to support the Brick and Mortar store.  And since I own a B&M store, things that help to support that store are appreciated by me.

Unlike many game store retailers, I support my family entirely with the money we make in our store.  I do not have a "real" job.  This is my vocation.  I do not have a retirement, but I make a fairly good living running a real B&M store for customers who enjoy it.  My shop is clean and well lit, no boxes cluttering my floors, no junk piled behind my counters.  This is a real business, which supports seven adults with full time jobs.

So, thank you Margaret Weis Productions and Green Ronin, and other publishers who are moving to include the B&M stores in the PDF supply chain.  I can see that you, and your companies, really value the retail store as part of the game industry.

Recognize, if you will, that publishers who do this literally are forgoing a larger share of an individual sale--for the sake of their retail partners.  They could very easily have a special online offering where if you bought the book from them for full price, you'd get the PDF for free.  Instead, they are selling the book to a distributor at 60% off, the retailer is buying it at about 50% off, and they are still giving the end consumer the free PDF.  This is a generous act on the part of those publishers--and as a retailer, I am going to have to applaud such efforts!!

As to Rembert Parker, who stated that maybe the print versions of books and modules will turn out to be the fad--a 40 years history of success is not a fad, sir.  Horse drawn carriages were not a fad.  They lasted hundreds of years in different forms.  Maybe someday all books will be electronic.  Perhaps nothing will be printed in the RPG industry.  Comics, either.  My question to you would be:  What will you do then?

Me, I will be selling stuff from a store called Titan's Entertainment Cafe.  That stuff may change, but I will not be applauding or hoping for the day when I can no longer sell the games or comics or other items I enjoy, because they are all downloadable for free, or cheap.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.