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Rip off UK!!!
- Thread starter The Grood
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As for the terrible weather - thanks to the US policies on carbon emissions and other environmental issues, the UK's weather system is getting better by the year due to global warming! We'll all be hitting the glorious sands of Bournemouth, rather than heading for the Mediterranean before the decade is out! 
thworple said:As for the terrible weather - thanks to the US policies on carbon emissions and other environmental issues, the UK's weather system is getting better by the year due to global warming! We'll all be hitting the glorious sands of Bournemouth, rather than heading for the Mediterranean before the decade is out!
Yup. And we'll be exporting our wine to the US - at 3.5x the price it is here.
Ooooh I love it when something comes full circle.
Over and out.
Back to the OP's question, the answer is the market.
There is of course things like taxes (VAT), importing costs, local storage and marketing...
However, major companies price things depending on the market and other similar products.
I have a friend who does pricing for a major Japanese electronics company and all the prices are set in Japan for each different market. They study the market and decide what price would be acceptable and what their competitors prices are. They then take into account all local costs and the need for a profit before setting a price. The profit margin is different in different countries for the same product.
The USA is notorious for its cheap prices. The major factor in sales over there is the price and after-service care. Whereas in other countries, other factors come into play.
Believe me, it is no conspiracy. It is carefully thought out and studied..
PS Not all British food sucks. There is a lot of traditional stuff which is great and not a lot of people cook these days.
There is of course things like taxes (VAT), importing costs, local storage and marketing...
However, major companies price things depending on the market and other similar products.
I have a friend who does pricing for a major Japanese electronics company and all the prices are set in Japan for each different market. They study the market and decide what price would be acceptable and what their competitors prices are. They then take into account all local costs and the need for a profit before setting a price. The profit margin is different in different countries for the same product.
The USA is notorious for its cheap prices. The major factor in sales over there is the price and after-service care. Whereas in other countries, other factors come into play.
Believe me, it is no conspiracy. It is carefully thought out and studied..
PS Not all British food sucks. There is a lot of traditional stuff which is great and not a lot of people cook these days.The Grood said:
I think Napoleon was left handed. And France introduced some usefull things around the time of the French revolution like for expample the metric system.
Edit: The Wikipedia article on left handedness states that about 8-15% of the population are left handed. So the chances are not that bad in general.
The Grood said:
I think you're missing the point. It's not that you guys won't demand cheaper prices, it's that the local conditions require Apple to charge more. If they were to lower prices then sacrifices would need to be made in other departments - sacrifices they can't afford to make on services you wouldn't want to see cut.
Yes, Apple will charge what they think consumers will pay but even if you remove the profit you still have to face brass tacks that business costs more in the UK.
Chundles said:
Yeah, but would you not agree they are exploiting a dominant/generic/monopoly market position?
Apple knows we don't have much of a choice when it comes to mp3 players.
So will the Zune launch see a serious price adjustment, I wonder?
The Grood said:
Of course they are, they are a business after all - but there's nothing you can do to bring prices inline with US prices.
You have a huge choice when it comes to mp3 players, nobody is forcing you to buy Apple.
Zune is tipped to launch at around the same price as the iPod.
Unfortunetly, there are many SUVs on our roads today- just none by Chevy (who are just rebadged Daewoo's anyway)- goto the Land Rover website- a proper off-roader.[/QUOTE]
Well let's just say GMC then. I guess though if you guys had Cadillacs you would have more gangsters.
Well let's just say GMC then. I guess though if you guys had Cadillacs you would have more gangsters.
macenforcer said:
Different voltage - No, it's you that has the wrong voltage
High gas prices - Yes, but we have decent public transport paid for by our petrol tax. It's cheaper than running your own car and it reduces carbon emissions, thus helping to save the world. I've lived in London for two years, and I've never once felt the need to drive.
Terrible weather - Nope; bracing weather
(it's not really as bad as some people think)Gross cuisine - Next time you sit down for a roast dinner or Thanksgiving meal, maybe you should think about where it comes from? Plus the gross American cuisine hasn't exactly stopped you living there
Drive on the wrong side of the road - If our petrol prices are so high, you won't be driving anyway
Roundabouts - Ditto
No SUVs - They're god awful cars anyway. The ultimate symbol of mindless, hedonistic and macho overconsumption.
macenforcer said:and just a lower standard of living. A one bedroom flat over there cost like $3000 US a month and the buildings were made in like 1750 BC.
Prices vary greatly in different areas. London is stupidly pricey - but its suburbs are actually quite reasonable. And with our fantastic-ish public transport, you'll be in the centre in 30 mins. Other cities such as Manchester, Newcastle or Birmingham are very reasonable - not much different from the US. Plus, defining standard of living purely by what you can afford is a very inaccurate way of measuring standard of living. If I recall, there was a survey recently that said Americans had on average the lowest number of close friends, which was put down to the atomised way of life which now pertains in the US where town-centres resemble gost towns and everyone is out for what they can get (although it is creeping in over here too).
macenforcer said:
Oh, our politicians. That's the dirty shame of our country
Lots of people bad mouth SUVs but let me ask you this? How do you shuffle around 4 kids like I have in a car? MiniVan? Might as well jack that mini van up and call it an SUV. I love my Escalade, would't dream of living without one.
macenforcer said:Well let's just say GMC then. I guess though if you guys had Cadillacs you would have more gangsters.
Err... European cars are much better than American cars.
macenforcer said:
Out of all the SUVs/4x4s I see, one out of ten look like they need it. The rest just see it as an extension of something else
BlizzardBomb said:Err... European cars are much better than American cars.
Seconded. But they're only better than American-built American cars. American built Japanese and European cars are OK but only because the parent companies have taught the employees how to build a car properly. Not like the US car companies where the primary method seems to be "throw stuff at the ground till it looks like a car."
Hell even our tiny local car production facilities (owned by GM and Ford but run by Europeans, Japanese and Aussies) can build superior cars to the massive factories in the US.
The Grood said:
1. No. I chose to buy an iPod, I chose because I liked the features, the price and the software integration as well as the design. There's absolutely nothing stopping you buying any other mp3 player on the market - none.
2. Can't find it, I think it was on iLounge.