Nintendo Pulls Products From Amazon US Site (bloomberg.com) 36
Nintendo pulled its products from Amazon's US site after a disagreement over unauthorized sales, meaning the e-commerce company missed out on the recent debut of Nintendo's Switch 2 -- the biggest game console launch of all time. From a report: The Japanese company stopped selling on Amazon after noticing that third-party merchants were offering games for sale in the US at prices that undercut Nintendo's advertised rates, according to a person familiar with the situation. Enterprising sellers were buying Nintendo products in bulk in Southeast Asia and exporting them to the US, said the person, who requested anonymity to discuss confidential information.
Nintendo product listings started disappearing from Amazon's US site last year, gaming news outlets reported at the time. The listings had previously appeared as "Sold by Amazon," which typically denotes merchandise the online retailer buys directly from brands. Some Nintendo products remained on the site, but they were listed by independent merchants who sell their goods on Amazon's sprawling online marketplace.
Nintendo product listings started disappearing from Amazon's US site last year, gaming news outlets reported at the time. The listings had previously appeared as "Sold by Amazon," which typically denotes merchandise the online retailer buys directly from brands. Some Nintendo products remained on the site, but they were listed by independent merchants who sell their goods on Amazon's sprawling online marketplace.
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Do you have any idea how economics work?
Products are routinely sold for different prices in different markets and it is not racism or a scam.
Supply and demand.
Pricing to what the market will bear.
Arbitrage.
These are real things.
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There are countries where the average yearly income is less than four times the cost of a single game. Why do you hate people in poorer countries so much? It is racism, or do you just need to feel superior by making it impossible for them to kick your ass in World of Warcraft?
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Sure it does.
The demand for products in Shithole Country ABC doesn't support the price you can sell something for in LuxuryLand DEF.
the latter (Score:1)
Products which reflect their true value (e.g., computer components, or bullion) sell for the same price worldwide, subject only to taxes and distribution costs. Things like books and music are sold at whatever the market can bear. Nintendo's products are the same way, there is nothing they make that is sold based on the cost of production. So while computers and consoles are similar in how they are used, they are very different how they are sold.
This distinction has always been true. 20-30 years ago the Ind
Re: Why are they selling the same thing (Score:2)
Why is shit more expensive at 7-11 than it is at the grocery store? Do you think that's racism?
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Why is shit more expensive at 7-11 than it is at the grocery store? Do you think that's racism?
To be fair, when the Simpsons movie came out 7-11 changed the signage of a bunch of their stores to say "Kwik-E-Mart". They sold Simsons related products and when you left they said "thank you, come again" in their best Apu accents.
I found it fun, but not everyone did...
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Or it reflects that reality that some countries have an average annual income of nearly $200,000, and some have and average annual income of $220.
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Can targeted racism reduce overall racism? Can controlled burns reduce wildfires?
Why doesn't Amazon clean up? (Score:2)
I really do not understand why Amazon doesn't clean up its vendors. Scam sites. Counterfeit products. Sites selling used stuff as new. Etc. Etc.
Personally, I only ever order from Amazon if there is no other real choice, because you just cannot trust them. Do they make so much money from shady sites that they do not care about their reputation? Or is the general public unaware of the problems?
Serious question: why don't they clean up?
Re:Why doesn't Amazon clean up? (Score:5, Informative)
Do they make so much money from shady sites that they do not care about their reputation?
Try B. It does not meaningfully affect Amazon's reputation, because people don't even notice most of the time.
And C. The 3rd party merchants undercutting Nintendo pricing are not selling counterfeit products anyway.
This is a type of arbitrage, and not counterfeit items: Enterprising sellers were buying Nintendo products in bulk in Southeast Asia and exporting them to the US
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This is not illegal but many companies act like it is. Many of those same companies love to take advantage of cheaper labor costs in foreign countries and it's considered "smart business" but don't you dare try to sell products initially purchased from other countries.
What is illegal is price fixing and this may be violating those laws in the U.S. And it wouldn't be the first time Nintendo would be
Re:Why doesn't Amazon clean up? (Score:4, Informative)
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They've just copied Fry's business model and moved it to the internet. Shovel shit, run fast and loose, if someone gets fucked over by your processes no big deal as there are thousands more behind them. Once I bought an alleged UW PCI SCSI card and got it home and found a fast narrow ISA SCSI card in the box. Cost to Fry's to process my return: a few dollars, tops. Cost to me: Probably $20-30 since I had to return to the store which was in another city on the other side of a mountain range.
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I really do not understand why Amazon doesn't clean up
It would cost more than the effects of the bullshit on their bottom line, because most consumers are stupid and they get a sweetheart deal on shipping which makes processing the returns viable.
Re: Why doesn't Amazon clean up? (Score:2)
Because contrary to popular belief, Amazon is not an ecommerce company; they are a logistics and shipping company. The more volume the better, regardless of how well received the goods are.
PWDR (Score:2)
paywalled didn't read
Re:PWDR (Score:4, Informative)
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Do you think so? The Switch 2 is still available from Nintendo's own website, as well as Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Gamestop, and Microcenter.
I find it hard to imagine that anyone who wants a Switch 2 is going to give up when they don't find it on Amazon. Or that a lack-of-advertising on Amazon is going to be the thing that makes sales "fall off a cliff" for this product.
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They’ll be struck down by the EU for that. They’ve functionally bricked those devices. You can’t even play game key card or eshop single player games on a banned device, and can’t get game updates. Historically Sony and msft would ban a console from online multiplayer but that’s it. Nintendo has gone way too far.
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The hardware isn't sold. It is licensed.
All the citations needed.
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Oh, no! (Score:2)