5 ms·

I dislike Amazon as much as the next guy but let's not kid ourselves here. Consumers aren't looking for innovation in the paper towel market. They just want che

I dislike Amazon as much as the next guy but let's not kid ourselves here. Consumers aren't looking for innovation in the paper towel market. They just want cheap stuff. If Amazon can make these products cheaper then the consumers win.

munificent 6y ago
Lack of competition drives prices up too. Once there is only one paper towel manufacturer left, what is to prevent it from raising prices?
- spaced-out 6y ago
  At that point it would be an actual monopoly, and we can break that company up.
  - sneak 6y ago
    There’s no evidence that that mechanism is effective any longer. The United States regulators seem to be entirely content with fake not-monopolies (eg ISPs) lying about how much competition they have, and let monopolies or duopolies fleece millions for essential services or products as long as they spend the requisite amount of kickback via lobbying. Admittedly those are public utilities but the attitude seems to hold true in antitrust as well. Walmart is probably the best example there, or now Amazon as evidenced by TFA. Sometimes I wonder why Walmart and Comcast are allowed to behave this way while T-Mobile is not. (EDIT: Google says “nevermind”: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/sprint-t-mobile-merger-antitrust-official.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/sprint-t-mobil...)
wpietri 6y ago
Product feature innovation is not the only kind of innovation. Supply chain innovation provides the cost reductions needed to lower prices. And you regardless need product expertise to know where to cut costs. As a super-obvious example, an accountant looking to cut costs at a hamburger chain might first suggest reducing the amount of meat or using old meat. But that reduces value as much or more than costs, so it's a bad optimization.

5 ms·

I dislike Amazon as much as the next guy but let's not kid ourselves here. Consumers aren't looking for innovation in the paper towel market. They just want che

by smbullet 6y ago

munificent 6y ago
Lack of competition drives prices up too. Once there is only one paper towel manufacturer left, what is to prevent it from raising prices?
- spaced-out 6y ago
  At that point it would be an actual monopoly, and we can break that company up.
  - sneak 6y ago
    There’s no evidence that that mechanism is effective any longer. The United States regulators seem to be entirely content with fake not-monopolies (eg ISPs) lying about how much competition they have, and let monopolies or duopolies fleece millions for essential services or products as long as they spend the requisite amount of kickback via lobbying. Admittedly those are public utilities but the attitude seems to hold true in antitrust as well. Walmart is probably the best example there, or now Amazon as evidenced by TFA. Sometimes I wonder why Walmart and Comcast are allowed to behave this way while T-Mobile is not. (EDIT: Google says “nevermind”: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/sprint-t-mobile-merger-antitrust-official.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/sprint-t-mobil...)
wpietri 6y ago
Product feature innovation is not the only kind of innovation. Supply chain innovation provides the cost reductions needed to lower prices. And you regardless need product expertise to know where to cut costs. As a super-obvious example, an accountant looking to cut costs at a hamburger chain might first suggest reducing the amount of meat or using old meat. But that reduces value as much or more than costs, so it's a bad optimization.