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> The problem with this is that it's built in the backs of brands who were at one point well recognized brands on Amazon. Amazon took their sales data, determin

> The problem with this is that it's built in the backs of brands who were at one point well recognized brands on Amazon. Amazon took their sales data, determined it was a good market to move into, created specifications and reached out to their hundreds of sellers for a "private label opportunity". Not sure I'm seeing the problem. On the surface it sounds pro-consumer. Plus, this is already common in brick & mortar stores, I think Costco is particularly well-known for doing this (and of course private-label/house/generic store brands are hardly uncommon elsewhere too). If it was that destructive, why do we still have brand names in regular stores as it is?

philjohn 8y ago
Until the second part of OP's story happens - which is the competitors die off and then Amazon jacks up the prices. Most of these sellers are much smaller than the brand names you see in supermarkets, and also much newer. Spigen, Anker etc. don't have the same sentimental decades long attachment that Kellogs, or Pepsi have with consumers either.
- ctvo 8y ago
  The second part of the theory has been the hammer dropping for 15 years. Amazon makes no money in retail to drive out competitors and when that day finally happens! Just you wait! The prices! I'm still waiting. The ride has been beneficial so far.
  - chottocharaii 8y ago
    The stock market has priced in those future increases in the present day inflated stock price. That's a pretty decent indication.
    - Nasrudith 8y ago
      The stock market isn't psychic. They believe all sorts of irrational things and are perfectly capable of being turkeys who vote for Thanksgiving. Price raising on commodities hasn't worked out all that well in general. While the network effect helps it isn't omnipotent. People are already returning to brick and mortar for better prices.
- TulliusCicero 8y ago
  > Until the second part of OP's story happens - which is the competitors die off and then Amazon jacks up the prices. Whenever some disrupter comes into a market, you always see some people saying this "just you wait, they'll jack up the prices sky high any minute now!!" and it seems to happen rarely, if ever. For example, there are plenty of small towns where Wal-mart was able to dominate and drive out small mom and pop retail shops. I've heard plenty of complaints about that, but I've never heard anyone say, "...and then after they drove out all the little shops, the prices went through the roof!!"
  - user3359 8y ago
    I can't speak to mom and pop shops in small towns. I think while the concept is the same, this would be more along the lines of the town opening it's own discount store and putting the mom and pops out of business. But I can attest to 2 products I've ordered yearly for the past 3 years, increase in price about 10% each year. The diversity of competing products has decreased substantially.
  - 394549 8y ago
    > Whenever some disrupter comes into a market, you always see some people saying this "just you wait, they'll jack up the prices sky high any minute now!!" and it seems to happen rarely, if ever. It's happening at Amazon. When they started, their prices were often much cheaper than physical retail. Now they're about the same, and sometimes outrageously higher. > For example, there are plenty of small towns where Wal-mart was able to dominate and drive out small mom and pop retail shops. I've heard plenty of complaints about that, but I've never heard anyone say, "...and then after they drove out all the little shops, the prices went through the roof!!" I doubt Wal-Mart makes pricing decisions like that at the store level, so your example doesn't really hold up.
    - TheTrotters 8y ago
      > It's happening at Amazon. When they started, their prices were often much cheaper than physical retail. Now they're about the same, and sometimes outrageously higher. I'm curious if you have any examples. I have been very happy with Amazon. Even though every now and then I look up competitor's prices and selection Amazon is usually better at one or both. When they aren't it's not by a lot. Many people in this thread have complaints about Amazon but my experience has been great so I'm wondering where the disconnect is coming from.
- savanaly 8y ago
  I just have a hard time picturing the dystopian world where everyone walks around with figurative chains around their neck, working lifetimes of drudgery, because we let Amazon finally get monopoly power in all the stuff they sell and we have to pay double for our pens, notepads, backpacks and soap. And not a single company is popping up to reap the profits of selling a comparable item at a price that by construction of this scenario could be well below Amazon's but well above the cost of production.
- Paul-ish 8y ago
  Companies don't jack up prices anymore. They lower their costs (ie reduce labor). It ends up inore profit and doesn't set off alarms at the FTC, which looks for harm to the consumer. Monopsony has been shown to reduce wages[1]. [1] http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0003122418762441 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/000312241876244...
- kkarakk 8y ago
  I don't think this is accurate even for the brands you listed. spigen and anker are consistently the most recommended brand even by relatively tech illiterate youtubers. they've built up some trust with me and I've only owned one spigen phone case for my nexus 6P - if I see someone complaining about a generic powerbank/case I recommend anker/spigen respectively and tell them to check out whatever content creator(youtuber or tech site) they trust to see a review of it
taco_emoji 8y ago
Sure, it's pro-consumer. But it's anti-producer. Why shouldn't we care about those externalities?

philjohn 8y ago

Until the second part of OP's story happens - which is the competitors die off and then Amazon jacks up the prices. Most of these sellers are much smaller than the brand names you see in supermarkets, and also much newer. Spigen, Anker etc. don't have the same sentimental decades long attachment that Kellogs, or Pepsi have with consumers either.

ctvo 8y ago
The second part of the theory has been the hammer dropping for 15 years. Amazon makes no money in retail to drive out competitors and when that day finally happens! Just you wait! The prices! I'm still waiting. The ride has been beneficial so far.
- chottocharaii 8y ago
  The stock market has priced in those future increases in the present day inflated stock price. That's a pretty decent indication.
  - Nasrudith 8y ago
    The stock market isn't psychic. They believe all sorts of irrational things and are perfectly capable of being turkeys who vote for Thanksgiving. Price raising on commodities hasn't worked out all that well in general. While the network effect helps it isn't omnipotent. People are already returning to brick and mortar for better prices.
TulliusCicero 8y ago
> Until the second part of OP's story happens - which is the competitors die off and then Amazon jacks up the prices. Whenever some disrupter comes into a market, you always see some people saying this "just you wait, they'll jack up the prices sky high any minute now!!" and it seems to happen rarely, if ever. For example, there are plenty of small towns where Wal-mart was able to dominate and drive out small mom and pop retail shops. I've heard plenty of complaints about that, but I've never heard anyone say, "...and then after they drove out all the little shops, the prices went through the roof!!"
- user3359 8y ago
  I can't speak to mom and pop shops in small towns. I think while the concept is the same, this would be more along the lines of the town opening it's own discount store and putting the mom and pops out of business. But I can attest to 2 products I've ordered yearly for the past 3 years, increase in price about 10% each year. The diversity of competing products has decreased substantially.
- 394549 8y ago
  > Whenever some disrupter comes into a market, you always see some people saying this "just you wait, they'll jack up the prices sky high any minute now!!" and it seems to happen rarely, if ever. It's happening at Amazon. When they started, their prices were often much cheaper than physical retail. Now they're about the same, and sometimes outrageously higher. > For example, there are plenty of small towns where Wal-mart was able to dominate and drive out small mom and pop retail shops. I've heard plenty of complaints about that, but I've never heard anyone say, "...and then after they drove out all the little shops, the prices went through the roof!!" I doubt Wal-Mart makes pricing decisions like that at the store level, so your example doesn't really hold up.
  - TheTrotters 8y ago
    > It's happening at Amazon. When they started, their prices were often much cheaper than physical retail. Now they're about the same, and sometimes outrageously higher. I'm curious if you have any examples. I have been very happy with Amazon. Even though every now and then I look up competitor's prices and selection Amazon is usually better at one or both. When they aren't it's not by a lot. Many people in this thread have complaints about Amazon but my experience has been great so I'm wondering where the disconnect is coming from.
savanaly 8y ago
I just have a hard time picturing the dystopian world where everyone walks around with figurative chains around their neck, working lifetimes of drudgery, because we let Amazon finally get monopoly power in all the stuff they sell and we have to pay double for our pens, notepads, backpacks and soap. And not a single company is popping up to reap the profits of selling a comparable item at a price that by construction of this scenario could be well below Amazon's but well above the cost of production.
Paul-ish 8y ago
Companies don't jack up prices anymore. They lower their costs (ie reduce labor). It ends up inore profit and doesn't set off alarms at the FTC, which looks for harm to the consumer. Monopsony has been shown to reduce wages[1]. [1] http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0003122418762441 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/000312241876244...
kkarakk 8y ago
I don't think this is accurate even for the brands you listed. spigen and anker are consistently the most recommended brand even by relatively tech illiterate youtubers. they've built up some trust with me and I've only owned one spigen phone case for my nexus 6P - if I see someone complaining about a generic powerbank/case I recommend anker/spigen respectively and tell them to check out whatever content creator(youtuber or tech site) they trust to see a review of it

taco_emoji 8y ago

Sure, it's pro-consumer. But it's anti-producer. Why shouldn't we care about those externalities?