This is NOT a question. I answered another writer's question, but my comment appeared on the 3rd page of comments, hidden away, and I feel that this is something that new writers should know:
A short comment on a detail of --- -----'s point "they're going to risk the costs of registering for an ISBN [...]"
I contacted a "self-publishing agency" and this ISBN offer was presented as a BIG DEAL. I suppose that for inexperienced authors it seems so. Here are [some] facts:
(I'm a resident of Germany, so the amounts are German ones, but I'd guess that the general pattern holds for all countries.)
A self-publishing author is not obliged to buy an ISBN. It is, however, virtually necessary if you want to sell your book on amazon or in bookstores. In Germany, a single ISBN costs 89€. A 2nd (for your 2nd book... or a translation) will cost you 89€. A third will cost you... you're getting the picture: 89€.
A registered publishing house pays an initial "matriculation" fee of 139€. Once that hurdle is over, they can buy job lots of 1000 ISBNs for... 89€ - less than ONE CENT per title published. If we include the original (never to be paid again, even if they order 25000 ISBNs) 139€, it still works out as less than 2.5c per title.
So a "self-publishing agency" that charges you 499€ for a "special offer" that includes YOUR VERY OWN ISBN!!! is shelling out less than one cent for that detail. Of course, if you REALLY self-publish, you pay that 89€... But don’t let anybody fool you that they’re doing you this fabulous, very generous favour.
I really appreciated your advice Jimmy
That sounds about right. When I self-pubbed my first story via an intermediary the ISBN worked out at about £10 in the fee.
Of course if you only want to e-pub then Smashwords will give you an ISBN for free. And Amazon allocate you an AZIN, but that's only good for them.
dONE IT AGAIN, CLICKED ON THE WRONG KEY and uploaded my post before it was finished!
As a self-publisher, obviously YOU'RE responsible for creating the info web-site, though the ISBN agency might offer a run-through service where you just fill in a standard form. Since I haven't gone this route, I don't know.
A publisher - or self-publishing agency - SHOULD include all that work in their special offer. So make sure whether what they're offering is an ISBN or an ISBN-A.
GERMAN publishers pay:
10 ISBN-A: 100 Euro
30 ISBN-A: 240 Euro
100 ISBN-A: 600 Euro
250 ISBN-A: 1.000 Euro
500 ISBN-A: 1.500 Euro
so between 3 and 10 Euros per title (possibly in addition to the basic ISBN price quoted above).