If there weren't black market epubs, would that be one component to market forces doing their thing for high-quality content?
Related example, on a different factor: yesterday, I paid $51 for a nonfiction non-DRM .epub form of a book that was also available for $27 in ereader-specific DRM form. Had I instead pirated the book, that wouldn't have contributed to publisher incentive to offer non-DRM form, but that presumably would've contributed to the publisher wanting hard DRM lockdown.
(Or, I suppose, might've contributed to the publisher focusing on other factors than high quality, such as large volume, to bring it back to the earlier question?)
Related example, on a different factor: yesterday, I paid $51 for a nonfiction non-DRM .epub form of a book that was also available for $27 in ereader-specific DRM form. Had I instead pirated the book, that wouldn't have contributed to publisher incentive to offer non-DRM form, but that presumably would've contributed to the publisher wanting hard DRM lockdown.
(Or, I suppose, might've contributed to the publisher focusing on other factors than high quality, such as large volume, to bring it back to the earlier question?)