4 ms·

"Grey-market" means perfectly legal imports, just without the manufacturer's blessing. Even just calling them "grey" is a gross corporate invasion on ownership

"Grey-market" means perfectly legal imports, just without the manufacturer's blessing. Even just calling them "grey" is a gross corporate invasion on ownership rights.

sottol 3y ago
Agree, thus the scare-quotes.
someotherperson 3y ago
To me, at least, "grey" indicates that the manufacturer support for updates or warranty is in a "grey" area, since a lot of that is localised to where it was originally purchased from.
- xp84 3y ago
  And you’re super right that’s a good definition, but GP has a great point that if “black market” means it’s stolen merchandise, the very term grey market implies “kind of stolen” which is gross when it’s just “consumers using globalization in exactly the same way we do, in a way that slightly reduces our total margin dollars from the theoretical maximum”
  - hutzlibu 3y ago
    "black market” means it’s stolen merchandise" Black market is also drugs, guns, ... any trade not official allowed. And stolen goods often get sold legal via ebay, craigslist etc.
- prmoustache 3y ago
  Even that should be illegal. People move. All the times.
prawn 3y ago
If they can take advantage of global disparities to manufacture something, we should be able to take advantage of those disparities when buying.
- kazinator 3y ago
  > take advantage of global disparities to manufacture something Like ashen-faced children, slaving in a sooty factory, under a leaden sky. What is grey-market again? Brilliantly stated insight, by the way.
  - mcv 3y ago
    I'm all for banning the import of products created through child labour, slavery, or thoroughly unhealthy working conditions. But they're not banning that. They're just protecting corporate profits.
- rodgerd 3y ago
  No, no, no, that's not how it works. Globalisation is for throwing you in the street if you won't work for Vietnamese wages, not for letting you buy goods at Vietnamese prices.
wldcordeiro 3y ago
It's kind of disgusting seeing people even entertain the notion that this is right. It's corporations bullying people and controlling things they have no right controlling.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

"Grey-market" means perfectly legal imports, just without the manufacturer's blessing. Even just calling them "grey" is a gross corporate invasion on ownership rights.

sottol 3y ago

Agree, thus the scare-quotes.

someotherperson 3y ago

To me, at least, "grey" indicates that the manufacturer support for updates or warranty is in a "grey" area, since a lot of that is localised to where it was originally purchased from.

xp84 3y ago
And you’re super right that’s a good definition, but GP has a great point that if “black market” means it’s stolen merchandise, the very term grey market implies “kind of stolen” which is gross when it’s just “consumers using globalization in exactly the same way we do, in a way that slightly reduces our total margin dollars from the theoretical maximum”
- hutzlibu 3y ago
  "black market” means it’s stolen merchandise" Black market is also drugs, guns, ... any trade not official allowed. And stolen goods often get sold legal via ebay, craigslist etc.
prmoustache 3y ago
Even that should be illegal. People move. All the times.

prawn 3y ago

If they can take advantage of global disparities to manufacture something, we should be able to take advantage of those disparities when buying.

kazinator 3y ago
> take advantage of global disparities to manufacture something Like ashen-faced children, slaving in a sooty factory, under a leaden sky. What is grey-market again? Brilliantly stated insight, by the way.
- mcv 3y ago
  I'm all for banning the import of products created through child labour, slavery, or thoroughly unhealthy working conditions. But they're not banning that. They're just protecting corporate profits.
rodgerd 3y ago
No, no, no, that's not how it works. Globalisation is for throwing you in the street if you won't work for Vietnamese wages, not for letting you buy goods at Vietnamese prices.

wldcordeiro 3y ago

It's kind of disgusting seeing people even entertain the notion that this is right. It's corporations bullying people and controlling things they have no right controlling.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]