.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

Hence......FP, and Hasbro, are a bunch of crooks and will never get a dime of my money again.

 

A mass retail release of a figure would net them more money than these exclusives, even with the high price that's being charged, so money certainly isn't their goal, if they really are trying to rip you off. They must have a personal grudge against the fans.

.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

 

Obviously it isn't a charity organization, but these events are meant to be a promotion and celebration for said product. It is supposed to be a fun event, and not about money grubbing. We all know they are a company, and money is important, but I believe that they sell more than enough at chain outlets to feed their kids.

 

I live here in Japan and they either give away or sell things cheaply as a way to thank the fans for their support (anime expos, video game expos, ect.... We older fans support them (not the 12 and under crowd), so they often show their appreciation once in a while by giving us neat things at next to nothing prices, and we fans in return support their product. When you slap the same mold with a different color and jack up the price 300% you really are insulting the fans and their loyalty.

.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

 

Obviously it isn't a charity organization, but these events are meant to be a promotion and celebration for said product. It is supposed to be a fun event, and not about money grubbing. We all know they are a company, and money is important, but I believe that they sell more than enough at chain outlets to feed their kids.

 

I live here in Japan and they either give away or sell things cheaply as a way to thank the fans for their support (anime expos, video game expos, ect.... We older fans support them (not the 12 and under crowd), so they often show their appreciation once in a while by giving us neat things at next to nothing prices, and we fans in return support their product. When you slap the same mold with a different color and jack up the price 300% you really are insulting the fans and their loyalty.

1: As you say, the main market in Japan consists out of adults. In America, not so much. The japanese market is a LOT smaller than the american, so they cannot really be compared.

2: 3H wanted to "do it all just for the fans". They wanted to give the fans as cheap the toys as possible. And, in the end, they ended up bankrupt. Now, we have to pay a significant amount more, but, atleast you can say, and no offense to 3H, things are handled in a more organized manner than before.

3: (where 2 and 1 come together, in a way): those anime expos and the such, that comes from a lot of franchises and companies working together. That is because of economies of scale: None of the companies could sustain a con on their own. Their income from their market-segments is simply too limited. In the U.S.A., the total market is much larger, but at the same time, more limited, which meas that companies are far less likely to share a con. In other words, each franchise has to organize their own Con, like the TF franchise does. Furthermore, because japanese companies 'share' their cons, so to speak, their total costs are fall lower than they would have in the U.S.A., so that can allocate more money to lowering the prices of their exclusives, money which is used in the States to set up the Convention itself.

 

Ergo, you simply cannot compare them. If you know the background situation, you can see why the prices for the exclusives are quite reasonable.

.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

 

Obviously it isn't a charity organization, but these events are meant to be a promotion and celebration for said product. It is supposed to be a fun event, and not about money grubbing. We all know they are a company, and money is important, but I believe that they sell more than enough at chain outlets to feed their kids.

 

I live here in Japan and they either give away or sell things cheaply as a way to thank the fans for their support (anime expos, video game expos, ect.... We older fans support them (not the 12 and under crowd), so they often show their appreciation once in a while by giving us neat things at next to nothing prices, and we fans in return support their product. When you slap the same mold with a different color and jack up the price 300% you really are insulting the fans and their loyalty.

1: As you say, the main market in Japan consists out of adults. In America, not so much. The japanese market is a LOT smaller than the american, so they cannot really be compared.

2: 3H wanted to "do it all just for the fans". They wanted to give the fans as cheap the toys as possible. And, in the end, they ended up bankrupt. Now, we have to pay a significant amount more, but, atleast you can say, and no offense to 3H, things are handled in a more organized manner than before.

3: (where 2 and 1 come together, in a way): those anime expos and the such, that comes from a lot of franchises and companies working together. That is because of economies of scale: None of the companies could sustain a con on their own. Their income from their market-segments is simply too limited. In the U.S.A., the total market is much larger, but at the same time, more limited, which meas that companies are far less likely to share a con. In other words, each franchise has to organize their own Con, like the TF franchise does. Furthermore, because japanese companies 'share' their cons, so to speak, their total costs are fall lower than they would have in the U.S.A., so that can allocate more money to lowering the prices of their exclusives, money which is used in the States to set up the Convention itself.

 

Ergo, you simply cannot compare them. If you know the background situation, you can see why the prices for the exclusives are quite reasonable.

 

 

:pfx

 

I prefer paying more and actually GETTING THE FIGURES instead of getting a bankruptcy notice in the mail saying I'm not getting my figures after paying 3H for them.

 

SCF SKYWARP'd

Yaknow, I may keep saying "we", but I'm sure as hell no member of the TF club, nor a citizen of the U.S.A., or even North America, for that matter. :tflaugh

.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

 

I've never claimed they were a charitable organization.

 

I just claimed, with evidence, that they are crooks, charging obscene prices for figures they know people would want. I fully understand the concept of supply and demand, but there is a line. I would LOVE to see the profit margin on these figures.

 

I was never of the opinion that they must release them at retail prices. I would have been perfectly willing to pay up to $150, perhaps $200, for this set.

 

I know that I can get them for $179 IF I am at the convention. Problem? I can't afford to go. Not only is it 2000 miles away from me (because they refuse to believe that there are people living in the center of the country), it's the hotel costs, etc.

 

AND, that's one other thing that bothers me - how in the HELL does packaging cost $150?

 

Like I said - crooks.

 

I won't stop collecting TFs - I will just collect others than the current lines. If I see a current line figure I like, I'll wait until someone pares their collection down. Most likely, I will gravitate towards the older lines.

.....Jesus. Outback, much?

 

Meh. If you want to stop collecting TFs out of the misguided belief that Hasbro is not a company, but a charity-organisation for Transformer fans, be my guest. *shrug*

 

I've never claimed they were a charitable organization.

 

I just claimed, with evidence, that they are crooks, charging obscene prices for figures they know people would want. I fully understand the concept of supply and demand, but there is a line. I would LOVE to see the profit margin on these figures.

I was never of the opinion that they must release them at retail prices. I would have been perfectly willing to pay up to $150, perhaps $200, for this set.

 

I know that I can get them for $179 IF I am at the convention. Problem? I can't afford to go. Not only is it 2000 miles away from me (because they refuse to believe that there are people living in the center of the country), it's the hotel costs, etc.

 

AND, that's one other thing that bothers me - how in the HELL does packaging cost $150?

 

Like I said - crooks.

 

I won't stop collecting TFs - I will just collect others than the current lines. If I see a current line figure I like, I'll wait until someone pares their collection down. Most likely, I will gravitate towards the older lines.

 

Actually, there is no line. If they sell out at the current price point (which I'm almost positive they'll do), then they didn't set the price high enough. There's no morality in a pure market. And there's no crying in baseball.

There is a line. Anyone willing to pay the prices they are setting here is beyond the line of stupidity, and I feel sorry for them that they don't have self control, and are unable to tell crooks like FP and Hasbro "NO MORE".

 

But, to each his own. A pity that there will be enough suckers willing to bend over and toss the lube in the trash can, to encourage FP and Hasbro to pull this stunt time and time again.

There is a line. Anyone willing to pay the prices they are setting here is beyond the line of stupidity, and I feel sorry for them that they don't have self control, and are unable to tell crooks like FP and Hasbro "NO MORE".

 

But, to each his own. A pity that there will be enough suckers willing to bend over and toss the lube in the trash can, to encourage FP and Hasbro to pull this stunt time and time again.

 

Classy statement. You do realize that it is possible for people to buy big ticket collector's items responsibly, regardless of income level, right?

 

Hey, I've got an idea. Since you're done giving money to Hasbro, could you be finished posting on boards devoted to Hasbro products, as well?