Consumers don't think in terms of positive value, if they consider value at all. They consider negative value. For example, consider why skim milk costs LESS than whole milk, even though skim milk is more expensive to produce. People feel they're not getting the fat in their milk, so they should pay less, not more. Same thing here. They're not getting a physical book.

What's more, it costs a publisher far less to produce and distribute an ebook. So there is legit no good explanation that a consumer will accept for a higher priced ebook.