Well, it's because ebooks are sold using a completely different pricing system.

這是因為電子書的銷售採用了完全不同的定價系統。

When retailers like Barnes & Noble sell a paperback, they're allowed to set the price which usually results in cheaper books, since each store is competing for customers.

當像巴諾書店這樣的零售商出售平裝書時，他們可以設定價格，這通常會導致書籍更便宜，因為每家商店都在爭奪顧客。

Also, shelf space is limited, so it's common for stores to lower prices on older books so they can make room for new releases.

此外，書架空間有限，因此商店通常會降低舊書的價格，以便為新書騰出空間。

Either way, publishers like Simon & Schuster have no control over these price changes and they don't like that because if a store charges less, the publisher makes less.

不管怎樣，像西蒙與舒斯特這樣的出版商無法控制這些價格變化，他們不喜歡這樣，因為如果商店收費較低，出版商的收入就會減少。

When ebooks became popular, publishers saw an opportunity to create a more favorable pricing system and they teamed up with Apple to make it happen.

當電子書變得流行時，出版商看到了創建更有利的定價系統的機會，他們與蘋果合作實現了這一目標。

This resulted in what's called the agency model, which gave publishers control over ebook prices, instead of retailers.

這就產生了所謂的代理模式，讓出版商而不是零售商控制電子書的價格。

You might assume stores were upset by this change, but they actually welcomed it.

你可能會認為商店對這一變化感到不安，但實際上他們對此表示歡迎。

Apple wouldn't have to worry about Amazon undercutting them and vice versa.

蘋果公司不必擔心亞馬遜會壓低他們的價格，反之亦然。

Ebook prices would remain high, earning retailers more money and because digital stores have unlimited shelf space, there was no pressure to discount older ebooks.

電子書價格將保持高位，為零售商帶來更多收入，而且由於數位商店的貨架空間無限，因此沒有打折舊電子書的壓力。

And of course, publishers were happy. They'd make more profit per book, not only because they could keep prices high, but because their costs were even lower than before since ebooks are digital and cheaper to produce.

當然，出版商很高興。 他們每本書都會獲得更多利潤，不僅因為他們可以保持高價格，而且因為電子書是數位化的並且製作成本更低，因此他們的成本甚至比以前更低。

But there was one group of people that didn't benefit from this change, the customers who pay a higher price for ebooks today than they did 10 years ago.

但有一群人沒有從這項變更中受益，他們今天為電子書支付的價格比 10 年前更高。

The problem with this whole scheme was its legality.

整個計劃的問題在於其合法性。

By colluding with book publishers to manipulate the price of ebooks, Apple violated section one of the Sherman Act that earned them a lawsuit from the US government where Apple was forced to pay $450 million in damages.

透過與圖書出版商串通一氣，操控電子書價格，蘋果違反了謝爾曼法案的第一條款，因此被美國政府提起訴訟，最終蘋果被迫支付4.5億美元的賠償金。

But they didn't have to change the way they did business.

但他們不必改變他們的經營方式。

So despite the successful lawsuit, the agency model is still used in the ebook industry, which means we're unlikely to see the average ebook price fall anytime soon.

所以儘管訴訟成功，電子書行業仍在使用代理模式，這意味著我們短期內不會看到電子書的平均價格下跌。

This is Greg with Apple Explained and if you want to learn how I make videos like these, let me know by tapping the link in the comments.

我是 Apple Explained 的 Greg ，如果你想了解我如何製作此類影片，請點擊評論區中的連結告訴我。