Really. Let the scalpers buy all they want. Legit customers know full well that all they have to do is wait for the price to come down. If the scalpers really buy up every single iPhone, imagine the flood of cheap iPhones that will arrive in China in 6 months.
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iPhone 4 Sells Out in Apple's Chinese Online Store in Only 10 Hours, Scalpers Blamed
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Really. Let the scalpers buy all they want. Legit customers know full well that all they have to do is wait for the price to come down. If the scalpers really buy up every single iPhone, imagine the flood of cheap iPhones that will arrive in China in 6 months.
Yeah a nice breakI've been to Italy a beautiful country (at least the tourist part
ppsssttt: I like Portugal better (ice cold Super Bock Imperials overlooking the Tagus from Barrio Alto with a view of Cristo Rei.)
Lisboa is one bad a$$ city.
Here unlocked costs 1100eur for the 32GB version(******* expensive). The iPhone wasn't officialy available here and some stores already where selling them for a premium
edit: used to cost 1300eur
Is it only available through carriers in Portugal0?
The 32GB is 739 Euros here in Germany.
Based on what I know about Chinese culture and history, I'd say it's a lot more like this:
When you take a country with a several-thousand-year history of mercantilism so ingrained that bargaining is a hobby not an annoying necessity on big-ticket items, then for some bizarre reason try to switch to hard-core communism for a few years, once you loosen the restrictions it's an every man for himself free for all.
China is very good at capitalism, and has been for a long time. The middle of the last century was an extreme aberration, so it's not surprising to see things swing back to the status quo.
Of course, that doesn't mean that scalpers don't piss me off, because they do. It's a normal response to supply and demand mismatch, but given that Apple is attempting to do its customers a favor by not gouging them on pent up demand, I don't like to see the middle man rake in the difference, since they add nothing of value while at least Apple profits might go into a product or service I could use some day.
It would be amusing if Apple were able to ramp up production to a ridiculous degree; you wonder if the scalpers would over-buy and end up flooding the market once they realized they had a huge stock and there were still phones available through regular channels. Or maybe there are enough people who automatically assume the scalper is going to give them a better deal that it'd work out anyway.
Looks like macrumors ate my post lol. In Portugal all operators sell iPhones and they all cost the same 780eur
I agree with what you wrote.
What I wrote was being applied to individuals. What you are saying is mass cultural and historical. Russia has a long history of religion. But for eighty years they were forced to ignore religion (or go underground with it). When those restrictions suddenly ended, certainly there was a historical reason to expect a return to old ways. But individuals had to make up their own minds, and many of them had lived as atheists for several generations. For them this was a new idea.
Just as unbridled capitalism is a new idea for individual Chinese alive over the last couple of decades. Even though historically their culture predates us all. I simply wasn't talking about eons of habits, just individuals learning the old ways all over again.
Slap Them In The Face
You know what would be funny...Apple not make anymore available to China online until they have an enormous stock pile ready to go...then make about a third of that stock pile available online...let the scalpers buy them all up at top price...then release the other 2/3rds to the actual stores with the buying restrictions at a reduced price...put the scalpers out of business for a little while. It wouldn't accomplish anything but a brief slap in the face to the scalpers.
You know what would be funny...Apple not make anymore available to China online until they have an enormous stock pile ready to go...then make about a third of that stock pile available online...let the scalpers buy them all up at top price...then release the other 2/3rds to the actual stores with the buying restrictions at a reduced price...put the scalpers out of business for a little while. It wouldn't accomplish anything but a brief slap in the face to the scalpers.
They are available and used, albeit not as popular, in all Europe, too. All Online Apple Stores here are credit card only...
Why not just double the price? If people are willing to pay scalpers two or three times as much as MSRP, they would be more than willing to hand that money to Apple. Supply and Demand. When supply is a surplus, they will start to sell for below MSRP and you will be able to find them on every street corner.
Communist in name only.
Sure, the government is Communist. But there are 1.3 billion would-be entrepreneurs in China. I'm surprised it took ten whole hours to sell out the iPhone 4 online there.
Sure, the government is Communist. But there are 1.3 billion would-be entrepreneurs in China. I'm surprised it took ten whole hours to sell out the iPhone 4 online there.
The whole "buy this phone cheap with a contract" thing doesn't really exist in China. Actually, it exists, but very very few people take advantage of it, and as far as I know the selection of phones that is offered by the carriers with a contract discount is terrible.
Chinese people are quite used to spending 3000, 4000, 5000 rmb ($450-750) for a phone. It's not like America, where any phone over $99 or $199 is thought of as expensive. But you wind up with a phone that you can use anywhere on any carrier, unlocked, and not filled with weird carrier bloatware.
In my mind its a way way better system than being stuck with these long-term contracts and hoping that the carrier you're stuck with will give you the "privilege" of upgrading when new phones come out (if they even carry the new phones).
This sucks hard, but I guess is not surprising in any way. There is a huge, huge, segment of the population with little money and lots of time. Think 20-somethings with the alternative to a) work in a hair salon for 800 RMB per month, or b) open a little shop (online or off) and try to squeeze 10, 20, 30, 100 RMB profit on the sale of whatever they can sell.
Even if these guys make, say, 100 RMB profit on a 5000 RMB sale, that 100 RMB profit represents 1/8 of the income they might be able to get from a whole month of working at a restaurant or hair salon or whatever. The threshold for what you must make on scalping stuff to make it "worthwhile" is so much lower, and the supply of people who have the time and inclination is almost limitless.
And basically, then, this situation screws it up for everyone else, who just wants to 过日子 without complication. People often say "it's complicated" to to business in China (and it is), and I believe much of that complication is due to compaines, the govt, etc, having to put endless and overbearing checks/blocks/rules/procedures in place for eveyone to combat the people who will endless scam and work around the system to gain advantage and make a buck.
Grrr.
I wonder if putting an artificial delivery time - like 4 week delivery delay - in place would deter the scalpers a bit?
Even if these guys make, say, 100 RMB profit on a 5000 RMB sale, that 100 RMB profit represents 1/8 of the income they might be able to get from a whole month of working at a restaurant or hair salon or whatever. The threshold for what you must make on scalping stuff to make it "worthwhile" is so much lower, and the supply of people who have the time and inclination is almost limitless.
And basically, then, this situation screws it up for everyone else, who just wants to 过日子 without complication. People often say "it's complicated" to to business in China (and it is), and I believe much of that complication is due to compaines, the govt, etc, having to put endless and overbearing checks/blocks/rules/procedures in place for eveyone to combat the people who will endless scam and work around the system to gain advantage and make a buck.
Grrr.
I wonder if putting an artificial delivery time - like 4 week delivery delay - in place would deter the scalpers a bit?
I seriously doubt these guys are using credit cards. The online store lists four methods of payment - international credit cards, local credit cards (China Unionpay), something called 支付宝, which is a bit like paypal in China, and direct bank transfer to Apple's CCB account. I'm sure most of the scalpers will be using zhifubao or bank transfer.
There is a whole culture around bank accounts in China that's totally and completely different than in the US. My wife has like 20 different bank cards, all for different uses. Little buckets of money that she segregates off - some for receiving money from relatives, some for keeping money for relatives, blah blah blah. She's at the bank at least twice per week sending money from one card (account) to another, or to / from relatives, etc. It takes almost no time, isn't very expensive, and the money moves instantly (literally, right after you do the transaction at the counter, the person on the other end can check their account and the money will be there). I think it would be probably hard for Apple to try to restrict sales by account number, because it's just too easy for these guys to have 10, 20, 30, 100 different accounts (among a circle of friends).
dang. this might be a big issue for apple in china if they can't come up with something to stop it
Expensive iPhones do not sell well from Hong Kong shops
"Poor immigrant makes about $200 cash a day for a good score and a long day of "shopping" and sitting, then iPimp sells each phone in Hong Kong for $1000 over U.S. retail."
I have seen expensive iPhones and iPads in small Hong Kong shops and they are not selling. People walk by and laugh at the price. There are plenty of official Apple resellers in every shopping mall and shopping area. Stocks were low when they were first released but it's ok now. My two came within a week from the HK online store.
"Poor immigrant makes about $200 cash a day for a good score and a long day of "shopping" and sitting, then iPimp sells each phone in Hong Kong for $1000 over U.S. retail."
I have seen expensive iPhones and iPads in small Hong Kong shops and they are not selling. People walk by and laugh at the price. There are plenty of official Apple resellers in every shopping mall and shopping area. Stocks were low when they were first released but it's ok now. My two came within a week from the HK online store.
Lots of outlets
In Hong Kong there is no Apple store. Instead there are a lot of official resellers with official prices such as New Horizons, Fortress and Broadway. Go to their websites and see the number of stores they have. Loads! I think there are 7-10 stores between them on Sai Yeung Choi Street, Mong Kok alone.
Apple should do the same in China.
In Hong Kong there is no Apple store. Instead there are a lot of official resellers with official prices such as New Horizons, Fortress and Broadway. Go to their websites and see the number of stores they have. Loads! I think there are 7-10 stores between them on Sai Yeung Choi Street, Mong Kok alone.
Apple should do the same in China.
天高皇帝远 - "Heaven is high and the emperor is far away". This proverb means that away from Beijing, unchecked local authorities are free to spend recklessly and tax their subjects into poverty with impunity, until they rebel of course.
So it has always been with China's informal economy. Economics of scarcity and such. Call them unscrupulous if you will, but Chinese have been taking advantage of market inefficiencies like this for thousands of years. At least it's a luxury item and not food!
So it has always been with China's informal economy. Economics of scarcity and such. Call them unscrupulous if you will, but Chinese have been taking advantage of market inefficiencies like this for thousands of years. At least it's a luxury item and not food!