There are things in economics called Veblen goods (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good) which become more desirabl

There are things in economics called Veblen goods (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good) which become more desirable as they become more expensive. They seem related, but not exactly the same phenomenon you describe.