Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I ordered the hard cover version of this book the other night without reading any reviews, based on my enjoyment of Pillars of the Earth and historical fiction in general. The price was fair for a new book by a top author, and while my wife has a Kindle, I wanted a hard cover version since I know I'm going to want to share this and keep it on the shelf. I also like to feel I'm progressing through the book - call me old school. Later, I looked at the review rating distribution to see what others thought and was surprised to see the large numbers of negative reviews. Thinking I had bought a rare Follett stinker, I started to read the reviews and quickly realized that it was a protest on the Kindle pricing. I think it's a flawed argument to say that the Kindle version should be cheaper. That only works if you believe that books should be priced on a cost plus basis - lower production and distribution costs should equal lower selling costs, right? Well, using that argument, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone should then have been priced way lower than the rest of the series, since the rights fees were relatively low, due to Rowling's status as an unknown author. That didn't happen. Conversely, several readers have made the point that this is a book that highlights the value of a Kindle since the electronic version is easier to carry. Why should the author and publisher make less money by giving consumers an added benefit? If I were them and knew I'd lose revenue with a cheaper Kindle version, I'd simply delay the release of the Kindle version, similar to how a DVD comes out only months after a movie is in theaters. Would that be preferable to those of you who took offense at the pricing? This industry isn't here as a charity. Regardless, you are all free to vote with your comments and pocketbook, as you are doing. I'm putting this note as a one star review to interject an opposing viewpoint into this discussion - if you agree you can vote this useful, otherwise, you're also free to disagree and send my note to the bottom of the Amazon heap. I'm sure I'll enjoy the book in any case.