Knowing the potentially troublesome and negotiable areas of any contract is the role of an attorney or other knowledgeable negotiator. But having that knowledge is only half of the equation. The publisher must be in the position of having some marketing clout before substantial changes can be made to some of these clauses. It is a relationship in which knowledge is useless without clout and clout potentially subject to being dissipated without knowledge. Given the narrowing of choices in the distribution field due to some distributors going out of business, those remaining may find themselves having to be even more cautious than before.
Policies are often more restrictive out of self-preservation.
These then are some of the issues to which the publisher should pay attention in examining any distribution agreement. This term refers to who pays the cost of shipping. And while there may be heightened excitement and thus a lack of concern about the costs when sending the books to the distributor, there is generally no joy in paying to have the books roll back to the publisher, often to find them damaged, unwanted, and unsaleable. So the publisher should be aware that it may incur shipping costs to the distributor as well as to the stores in these circumstances. A very important and often not well-considered issue.