The 30% marketplace commission is the number everyone quotes, but it is not the real cost. The real cost is the reader relationship: marketplaces own the email address, the purchase history and the recommendation slot.
The break-even math
A direct storefront costs money to build and a few percent per transaction to operate. For a publisher selling 200 ebooks a month at $9.99, moving a third of those sales direct recovers a typical storefront build cost within the first year — before counting the value of the mailing list you now own.
When to stay on marketplaces
Direct sales complement marketplaces; they don't replace them. Discovery still happens in stores. The strategy that works: keep every title in every store, and give your existing audience a reason — bundles, early access, better prices — to buy direct.
One of our clients, Meridian Press, reached 33% direct revenue in a year with exactly this approach.
Working on something like this?
We give the same advice to clients — backed by a fixed quote and a delivery date.
Talk to the studio