Australian BA "disappointed at lost opportunity"
12.11.09 Catherine Neilan in The Bookseller

The Australian Booksellers Association has said it is "disappointed at the lost opportunity to modernise our industry", after the government announced yesterday (11th November) it was abandoning planned changes to book import laws.
Although the news was warmly welcomed by Australian publishers and authors—who had campaigned against the proposed changes, claiming it could damage the future of indigenous writing—booksellers, many of whom had backed the plans, were unhappy that the "reform" would not take place.

Malcolm Neil, chief executive of the ABA, said: "The competition faced by booksellers through the digital revolution, whether that be the e-book market just over the horizon, or the massive growth in online retailing is not going to diminish.
"The market conditions set in 1991 act as a hindrance to competition and in spite of acknowledging this point in both the productivity commission study and in the government's response, booksellers were not supported in their desire for reform.
"We look forward to our industry partners' response to this critical issue now that legislative involvement from government has been ruled out."

Under the existing rules, a title qualifies for protection if the Australian publisher releases the book within 30 days of its overseas release. The government is believed to have explored a compromise that would have reduced this 30-day period to seven or 14 days. But that plan, as well as an alternative proposal of a price cap similar to one in place in Canada, was rejected.

Consumer affairs minister Craig Emerson said in a statement: "In the circumstances of intense competition from online books and e-books, the government judged that changing the regulations governing book imports is unlikely to have any material effect on the availability of books in Australia."