There’s a lot of speculation going on about stipulating sale prices when granting master or resell rights…

Can I clear up the myths for you?

Probably not. I’m not a lawyer.

But common sense tells me that if Master Rights have been purchased the product is now yours to do with as you see fit.

If the originating author has asked that you don’t ‘give’ the product away their ‘conditions’ likely will stand up in a court of law if they find you in non-compliance. For that reason most of the ebooks I give away here clearly state within the ebook (or on the download page I ordered from) that the product could be given away. At any rate, I’m not suggesting here that you ‘give’ ebooks or software away that you’ve secured the rights to (see “*When to give it away…” below).

But price setting is something altogether different.

I’ve read more than a few originating authors stating that it was illegal to demand that their resellers sell the product at “no less than $…” For that reason those authors will give you a ‘Recommended Resale Price’ or ‘Manufacturer’s Resale Value’. Those authors know their markets, they know the true value of their report, and how much the market will bear for the information inside.

“The ‘Make Money’ niche is no different, other than to state that information on making money has immense value to the reader IF they put the knowledge into action.”

I’ll be posting information here about price setting as I come across it. In the meantime I was just reading an ebook that came with master resale rights and here’s what I found inside…

“It is illegal for us to set a price for the sale of this document. We are also not permitted to set the price being offered by any of our resellers or master resellers…”

Now that’s honesty and fairness!

Most marketers wouldn’t come clean like that in public - they’d pump up the cost and overhype the value of the information inside. You can’t blame an author - when they pour their time and experience into an ebook that has the potential to save others time and money, their souls are within those pdf reports. Therein lies the value - how to put a price on that?

Finally, it’s hard to objectively price your own work. Most ebook authors and marketers work solo and have to wait for the internet community at large to assess the product’s value. This is only achieved through testing at different prices - and compiling refund requests vs. unsolicited testimonials. A few months after an official launch they can afford to be more objective - the attachment to the work has waned and they have valuable feedback (good or bad) by their customers.

If you have any thoughts or knowledge on price setting resale rights, feel free to pass them on in the comment form below. Your comment will not be posted immediately as all comments are moderated. (If you wish to remain anonymous, please say so in your comment and I’ll ensure discretion!)

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* When to Give it Away: In some cases you will give products away as lost leaders, a way to build trust and rapport, to gain subscribers, to promote affiliate links.