4 ms·

Every retail store sales at price higher than retail? Do they now... I just bought GoW Ragnorok at retail $30 cheaper than its listing on the PSN Store. This i

by calsy 4y ago

Every retail store sales at price higher than retail? Do they now... I just bought GoW Ragnorok at retail $30 cheaper than its listing on the PSN Store. This is the same for most new release titles, retail is cheaper. Besides, you can't compare the real world with digital. The real world isn't a near infinite space with millions of items are available in a single place for everyone in the country with a connected device to view and purchase.

scarface_74 4y ago
And it’s still selling more than its wholesale cost. Do you think the retail store is selling it and not making a profit? Oh and guess what? Even when you buy a third party game from a retail store, the console maker still got their cut. Console makers have forced third party developers to pay a license fee for every game sold for over 30 years.
- calsy 4y ago
  So you complete changed the argument from retail to wholesale. That licensing fee applies to digital and physical copies so why is it relevant? Retail is a physical space, rent applies to properties in the real world. Rent does not apply to near infinite digital spaces run by a single company. It was cheaper to purchase in store than on the digital store, why is that? Is it because platforms only allow a single store to be available on their devices, their own. Imagine if there were competing stores? Im sure that 'rent' price would disappear really quick.
  - scarface_74 4y ago
    I didn’t (mis)use the term “rent seeking” the parent poster did. Just like Apple gets a cut of every app sold on iOS, the console makers do to. Even when you buy a physical disc The original poster was calling it “rent seeking” when Apple got 30% of sales. This is what every distributor does - they mark up the price. The “wholesale” price is the price the original manufacturer sells it to distributors for.
    - calsy 4y ago
      Again you are comparing the real world with digital. Are companies manufacturing software from sourced resources, excluding people and labour? Is Apple physically distributing software in trucks to stores across the country. No, none of this applies to digital content hosted on digital stores. You would think digital content would be cheaper, as it is not bound by real world restraints. It can be duplicated easily, moved quickly and made available at anytime to any person with a connect device. Apple sets its own mark up of 30%, they can do this through anti-competitive practice of limiting sales to their store only. If companies where able to host their own digital stores and sell their own digital products, Apple could not afford to mark up to 30% on sales because no one would buy anything at the inflated prices on their store.
      - scarface_74 4y ago
        > Again you are comparing the real world with digital. Are companies manufacturing software from sourced resources, excluding people and labour? Is Apple physically distributing software in trucks to stores across the country. No, none of this applies to digital content hosted on digital stores. So do you think running the app stores don’t have a cost? Is any company not charging a mark up for being a distributor of digital content? > You would think digital content would be cheaper, The physical retail markup is much higher. > Apple sets its own mark up of 30 As does all of its competitors. > If companies where able to host their own digital stores and sell their own digital products, Apple could not afford to mark up to 30% on sales because no one would buy anything at the inflated prices on their store. If that’s the case, why do companies that can sell physical goods on their own choose to sell on Amazon? Why don’t music companies sell their own digital downloads since they can be played on iPhones? Why don’t major publishers of books sell their books from their website? You can download a book from the web directly into the Books app and you can sideload on a Kindle? The answer is simple, Amazon and Apple are where the customers are and there is no friction buying from either one because your payment details are already on file. Marco Arment (cofounder of Tumbler and now a well known indie developer) said that one overlooked benefit of subscriptions through the App Store is that everyone keeps their payment information up to date with Apple. From a consumer standpoint, canceling a subscription through the App Store is much easier than for instance going to the NYTimes abs trying to cancel it.

by calsy 4y ago

scarface_74 4y ago

And it’s still selling more than its wholesale cost. Do you think the retail store is selling it and not making a profit? Oh and guess what? Even when you buy a third party game from a retail store, the console maker still got their cut. Console makers have forced third party developers to pay a license fee for every game sold for over 30 years.

calsy 4y ago
So you complete changed the argument from retail to wholesale. That licensing fee applies to digital and physical copies so why is it relevant? Retail is a physical space, rent applies to properties in the real world. Rent does not apply to near infinite digital spaces run by a single company. It was cheaper to purchase in store than on the digital store, why is that? Is it because platforms only allow a single store to be available on their devices, their own. Imagine if there were competing stores? Im sure that 'rent' price would disappear really quick.
- scarface_74 4y ago
  I didn’t (mis)use the term “rent seeking” the parent poster did. Just like Apple gets a cut of every app sold on iOS, the console makers do to. Even when you buy a physical disc The original poster was calling it “rent seeking” when Apple got 30% of sales. This is what every distributor does - they mark up the price. The “wholesale” price is the price the original manufacturer sells it to distributors for.
  - calsy 4y ago
    Again you are comparing the real world with digital. Are companies manufacturing software from sourced resources, excluding people and labour? Is Apple physically distributing software in trucks to stores across the country. No, none of this applies to digital content hosted on digital stores. You would think digital content would be cheaper, as it is not bound by real world restraints. It can be duplicated easily, moved quickly and made available at anytime to any person with a connect device. Apple sets its own mark up of 30%, they can do this through anti-competitive practice of limiting sales to their store only. If companies where able to host their own digital stores and sell their own digital products, Apple could not afford to mark up to 30% on sales because no one would buy anything at the inflated prices on their store.
    - scarface_74 4y ago
      > Again you are comparing the real world with digital. Are companies manufacturing software from sourced resources, excluding people and labour? Is Apple physically distributing software in trucks to stores across the country. No, none of this applies to digital content hosted on digital stores. So do you think running the app stores don’t have a cost? Is any company not charging a mark up for being a distributor of digital content? > You would think digital content would be cheaper, The physical retail markup is much higher. > Apple sets its own mark up of 30 As does all of its competitors. > If companies where able to host their own digital stores and sell their own digital products, Apple could not afford to mark up to 30% on sales because no one would buy anything at the inflated prices on their store. If that’s the case, why do companies that can sell physical goods on their own choose to sell on Amazon? Why don’t music companies sell their own digital downloads since they can be played on iPhones? Why don’t major publishers of books sell their books from their website? You can download a book from the web directly into the Books app and you can sideload on a Kindle? The answer is simple, Amazon and Apple are where the customers are and there is no friction buying from either one because your payment details are already on file. Marco Arment (cofounder of Tumbler and now a well known indie developer) said that one overlooked benefit of subscriptions through the App Store is that everyone keeps their payment information up to date with Apple. From a consumer standpoint, canceling a subscription through the App Store is much easier than for instance going to the NYTimes abs trying to cancel it.