A new book pricing system allowing less discounts on books went into effect on Friday with the aim of helping ease a price war among publishers, the culture ministry said.     

The fresh fixed book pricing system calls for scaling down maximum discounts on all books to 15 percent from the previously 19 percent and is aimed at correcting problems with the current pricing system accused of creating cutthroat price competition among market players. 

Introduced in 2003, the existing system has been blamed for resulting in excessive discounts by online booksellers by excluding how-to books, study books for primary school students and books published 18 months ago or more from the 19-percent rule. Critics say the price offensives by giant online booksellers have pushed small booksellers and publishers out of the market.

Officials expect the new rule will help establish reasonable prices for books and raise the profitability of publishers and bookstores by limiting the maximum discounts on all books at 15 percent of their published prices.

But there also have been concerns that the restriction may result in practically raising overall book prices if the currently inflated prices remain unchanged.

In an effort to dispel such concerns, publishers unveiled their plans last week to lower the prices of some 3,000 books by an average of 57 percent.

Currently, 2,500 of the 3,000 books are available at the lowered prices as publishers need more time to register the price changes, according to a government agency in charge of promoting the book publishing industry.

The ministry said it will closely monitor if the new pricing system goes as intended in cooperation with the agency.

"We'll operate a joint monitoring system on books and reflect monitored market changes in future government policies," said Kim Il-hwan, a ministry official in charge of the book publishing and printing industries. "We'll do our best to create a healthy publishing industry and provide consumers with a wider choice of quality books."

On the eve of the new system's implementation, websites of major bookstores such as Yes24 and Kyobo Book Center and Youngpoong Bookstore, were paralyzed for hours as they were flooded with shoppers wanting to buy books before their prices went up.

Interpark, a major online bookseller, said it saw a 376 percent jump in daily sales on Thursday alone.(Yonhap)