The latest adventure of Harry Potter triggered an online price war after the fifth book in the series hit national bookshelves last weekend.

Cyber bookstores have been offering "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" at discounts of more than 30 percent for the Chinese edition.

Dangdang.com, one of the most prominent online bookstores, is selling Harry Potter V at 44.3 yuan, 14.7 yuan cheaper than in retail shops.

In addition, online buyers receive a free classic novel, such as Shakespeare, with each purchase.

The online sales are putting price pressure on traditional retailers. However, the price is still within the discount limit of 25 percent set by the People's Literature Press, publisher of the book.

Similar to airfare wars, Joyo.com wasted no time in matching Dangdang's discount.

It further slashed the price to 39 yuan. It also offered buyers a free copy of the Chinese version if they purchased the 178-yuan English version.

Other online retailers, such as jingqi.com, followed suit.

The moves sent shivers through the People's Literature Press.

Sun Shunlin, director of the Press' planning and promotion department, said it had already stopped supplying Joyo.com to suppress the ongoing war.

The publishing house worried the price wars could signal "cut-throat" competition, something that would ultimately cut into expected profit margins and jeopardize the health of the book market.

However, bricks-and-mortar book-stores claim they were still unaffected and would not adjust their price.

Shanghai Book City, the city's largest bookshop, currently sells 200 to 300 copies daily.

Jiang Li of Shanghai Book City said, "People nowadays buy books in different ways. But most are still accustomed to shopping in real stores than on the Internet."

Zhao Tong from Dangdang.com, added: "Unlike our traditional counterparts, we don't have to maintain expensive shelf space. We make browsing huge inventories simple with search engines.

"We're offering items cheaper to encourage purchasing on the Internet and cultivating online shopping."

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