Hello all. Here’s a puzzle: Most music downloads are priced the same — around $0.99. That doesn’t make much sense. Different songs are … different, not least in terms of popularity. So if consumer demand for Song A is much greater than for Song B, why are both priced at $0.99? Why are the hits priced the same as the dross?
(Yes, I know about subscription services, and the limited number of both lower-priced and “premium” downloads. But for the most part, downloads are consumed a la carte and are uniformly priced around a $0.99 standard. And the explanation can’t just be because Apple wants it that way, because variable pricing, by more closely tracking demand, would benefit Apple as well as the record labels).
I have a paper coming out — The 99-cent Question — that offers an explanation. But before the paper hits the street I’d be interested in hearing yours. Why do we see hits and non-hits priced at the same $0.99 standard?
Well, I believe this is an
Well, I believe this is an issue of generational differences and values outlook. In entertainment, we don’t consider it fairness to charge more for the popular movie, album or when the Yankees come to town. Yes, the demand is higher and scalpers sell tickets for a higher price, but we don’t want to permit the holder of the event to raise the price because something is popular. Older generations feel this is price gouging.Many will just wait until the price comes down and then buy/download it—I would. Consistency in pricing establishes trust with a buyer. Of course, today’s Gen whatever, raised on the “free market” and Reagonomics and mindless consumption may feel you should apply supply and demand to everything, including your relationship with your mother. But maybe not.
The other explanation may be just practical. That even with technology, someone has to overview or supervise this, and in today’s tech industry, the goal is to set it up and collect and answer all questions online without any human involvement or labor costs.
Finally, consider fraud. If more downloads means the price goes up, you can bet many will download away to raise the price. Then , back to unwanted monitoring and supervision. Sometimes a click is not a genuine and sincere click.
Dear Slosar, Thanks for
Dear Slosar,
Thanks for your comment. I think the fairness questions you outline definitely are part of the answer, though I question whether they are the entire answer. One interesting fact — although it is true that traditionally sports teams charge the same price for every game — no matter if the opponent is the home team’s rival or a cellar-dwelling pack of scrubs — that practice is eroding. My own favorite team, the NY Mets, have a variable pricing scheme where big games against popular teams are priced higher than other games.
CJS
That is true and I thought
That is true and I thought of that, as in Chicago where Jerry Reinsdorf, the perennial sports owner, has put packaged the games into 2 or 3 team packages, That is, when the Cubs come to town, demand is overwhelming, so you can’t just buy a ticket to a Cubs game, you must buy a package which includes games like Kansas City, a minor league team in the majors.However, I will add that this very unpopular, and most see it as unfair. I have set up a survey on Survey Monkey on an area i ma interested in, and I think it would be interesting to collect data/opinions on this type of question.
J.R. Slosar
Adam Penenberg, of Slate
Adam Penenberg, of Slate magazine, explores the benefits and drawbacks to a tiered pricing model for digital downloads here. You can find some other interesting commentary on this question here.
Can you please tell me where
Can you please tell me where to find a list of Quotes in Public Domain?