ajm1503559545 Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 What is perhaps more likely is that Amazon would set a price just a little below Australian prevailing prices, so as to maximise per unit profit. That's supply and demand for you: you charge what the market is willing to pay. ;-) I suspect you might be right. They really won't have any (online) competition in Aus so they can probably afford to offer only minimal discounts on the incumbent retailers and still be attractive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Williams Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 What is perhaps more likely is that Amazon would set a price just a little below Australian prevailing prices, so as to maximise per unit profit. That's supply and demand for you: you charge what the market is willing to pay. ;-) Except that they are competing with amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and other international online vendors - they aren't only competing with local B&M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajm1503559545 Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 Except that they are competing with amazon.com, amazon.co.uk and other international online vendors - they aren't only competing with local B&M. If that were the case why bother setting up here? They'd just be undercutting their own business. I think you'll find there are lots of items on the UK and US sites that we don't have access to from here so these (hopefully) should become available when (if) there is a local presence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLXXX Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 (edited) Yes, David Williams, I'd agree to some extent. I think though it will be a set of marketing decisions that may take some time to play out and achieve an equilibrium. I think there is a group of consumers who are (reluctantly) prepared to deal with a mail order firm that is paid in Australian dollars, delivers overnight, and has a physical presence, albeit not a shop front, in Australia. And if the discount is a sufficient incentive. For that group of consumers, there may be a perceived sense of control that is missing if ordering from an overseas firm. And ultimately that perception is true. The ACCC can gather evidence for a prosecution and take a company to court more readily if the firm has a physical presence in Australia. An overseas mail order house is outside the direct jurisiction of Australian courts, either from the viewpoint of criminal, or civil, proceedings. Edited April 23, 2012 by MLXXX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nevyn72 Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 It would be worth it if there was a 'free super saver shipping' option for local items, even if the products had a slightly higher list price..... Also, even if the 'nett' cost after shipping was roughly the same, you would expect the local variant to arrive much sooner! Main disadvantage for Blu discs though would be that you end up with the chunky cases and oversized ratings labels on the artwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Williams Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 Amazon invariaqble offer free local shipping so it can't be too hard for them to offer price parity on the total package if they set up here. They might even sell Region A blurays too - I dunno - if it's just a distribution centre they could do that. It's about servicing Asia for them too if they set up here.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajm1503559545 Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 Shipping Costs - there's their profit margin before they have even started .... if we can purchase off them cheaper now AND pay international shipping rates, they can make a greater margin by warehousing here and paying/charging less in shipping. That assumes Amazon is able to secure a very cheap shipping rate from AusPost. It may happen but it doesn't seem to be the norm with local online retailers. I don't know how that part works but I very much doubt there's margin in the shipping. My bet is they're looking at this corner of the world and Aus is on the list of candidates. I would say we're just one on a large list of countries being scoped out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Williams Posted April 23, 2012 Share Posted April 23, 2012 I don't know how that part works but I very much doubt there's margin in the shipping. Depends what you mean by margin - International shipping is $6 or so. Local is $1 - that's a $5 advantage before you even compare the disk price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRIS08 Posted April 24, 2012 Share Posted April 24, 2012 anyone read todays paper (Adelaide Advertiser), GST Commission wants us to pay a gst on overseas goods from sites like amazon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajm1503559545 Posted April 24, 2012 Share Posted April 24, 2012 Depends what you mean by margin - International shipping is $6 or so. Local is $1 - that's a $5 advantage before you even compare the disk price. By margin I mean the difference between what the retailer pays the postal service and what the retailer charges the customer for shipping. There's a whole lot of assumptions going on here. Starting with the disk price. If you're assuming there will be 100% price comparity between Amazon US and Amazon Aus then the only difference as far as we (the customer) will see is the cost of the shipping. If you're also assuming that the cost in shipping will be cheaper than current Aus retailers (who absorb the cost into the price of the item) then the advantage is how much cheaper the shipping cost is. Everyone seems to assume that everything available from the US and UK stores will suddenly be available here and it will be cheaper again. I think that's a bit of wishful thinking. It also assumes that Amazon will ignore the licencing requirements of local BD/DVD distribution and it will be open season. My gut feeling is we'll be able to buy only the same stuff we can get from any other local retailer. I think everyone is kind of hung up on the idea of cheap(er) DVD and Blu-ray. What's being overlooked is the significant amount of other items Amazon sell in their US and UK stores but we don't have access to now because they can't or won't ship them here. This is the part I think would be really exciting and could cause a lot of disruption to local retailers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djOS Posted April 24, 2012 Share Posted April 24, 2012 anyone read todays paper (Adelaide Advertiser), GST Commission wants us to pay a gst on overseas goods from sites like amazon. Wont happen, last time Gerry raised this the Gov said it would cost more to implement and run than than they'd make in GST revenue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSmith Posted April 24, 2012 Author Share Posted April 24, 2012 anyone read todays paper (Adelaide Advertiser), GST Commission wants us to pay a gst on overseas goods from sites like amazon. This has been raised publicly in the media before by Gerry Harvey, and there was a large backlash from consumers. In the end Harvey Norman set up a direct import site for games and software from the UK. The government considered its position and decided (as it had done in the past) that the cost of administering that would exceed any monetary benefit to the government. That is why the level was set at, and continues to be at $1000. JSmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLXXX Posted April 24, 2012 Share Posted April 24, 2012 It's awkward for customs to unwrap mail sent to private individuals, and make an assessment of the value for duty and GST purposes. One option would be to stop delivery of all items that are not documents and require the addressee to attend an importations processing centre, make a declaration of the value, and supply supporting information regarding the value. Another approach to consider would be to give the overseas entity the option of registering under a special regime, and remitting duty and GST prior to importation into Australia. As the volume and value of importations by private individuals increases, around the world, governments are faced with challenges in collecting indirect taxes. In the past, importations would be made in volume by wholesalers, or retailers; not by private individuals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSmith Posted April 26, 2012 Author Share Posted April 26, 2012 Here is a few follow up articles, this one regarding book sales and this regarding console/PC game sales. This article refers to Amazon looking for a warehouse in WA, so it seems they may end up with multiple warehouse across Australia close to shipping ports. Quote; "Seattle, WA-based Amazon.com is rumored to be preparing to set up operations in Western Australia where it has put out feelers for a warehouse site that would accommodate a building up to 540,000 square feet." "Any property would also have to be near transport hubs such as Port Botany, Sydney and the Port of Melbourne." Also it appears Amazon Web Services is due to make an appearance... Quote; "One absentee in the local game is Amazon Web Services which has in the past six months been courting clients in preparation for a rumoured data centre opening in Sydney. " JSmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSmith Posted September 26, 2016 Author Share Posted September 26, 2016 Following on from Peter's post here; http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?/topic/224878-j-b-hi-fi-takes-over-the-good-guys/&do=findComment&comment=2083369 http://www.theage.com.au/business/retail/disruptor-amazon-set-to-shake-up-jb-hifi-and-harvey-norman-20160926-groe32 A major shake-up is looming in the retail sector as the giant online retailer Amazon has its sights set on the Australian market with JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman the ones with the most to fear. They're (almost) here! JSmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mello yello Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 (edited) if i ever need a book, ill keep them in mind, i get all my hardware from Aussie shops, stuff i can see before i buy, and know i can just pop back in for a refund or an exchange wouldnt even trust them to send me a DVD whoever sold off Australia to foreign interests should be hauled off his private yacht in the Bahamas, get his kids out of those exclusive american colleges and do something useful for this country, not somebody elses ... and protect our retail industry from getting sacked (appropriate choice of word i feel) trans pacific partnership Edited September 26, 2016 by mello yello Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAVX Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 2 hours ago, mello yello said: if i ever need a book, ill keep them in mind, i get all my hardware from Aussie shops, stuff i can see before i buy, and know i can just pop back in for a refund or an exchange wouldnt even trust them to send me a DVD whoever sold off Australia to foreign interests should be hauled off his private yacht in the Bahamas, get his kids out of those exclusive american colleges and do something useful for this country, not somebody elses ... and protect our retail industry from getting sacked (appropriate choice of word i feel) trans pacific partnership Interesting. I've never bought a single disc from any OS store and the very select few imports I do own have been gifted to me. So in the aim of supporting Australian retail, my collection is only about 300 strong. I have been told it could be over twice that if i'd imported. We make our choices don't those choices don't cost us too much. In my case, I know I helped support the Australian retail sector and as a small Australian business, feel it is the right thing to do. It seems Amazon does not bother with refunds or exchanges, so if a disc order gets messed up and you get an extra, they let you keep it how I ended up the few imports I have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groovem Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Actually most of the Blu-rays I have bought off Amazon US & UK are products that the local retailers could not be bothered supplying. Price is a lower consideration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAVX Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 53 minutes ago, groovem said: Actually most of the Blu-rays I have bought off Amazon US & UK are products that the local retailers could not be bothered supplying. Price is a lower consideration. Yes I get that some titles will never be available here. One I want is JOHN RAMBO (the director's cut of the 2008 RAMBO). I don't think we will ever see it on shelves here and if I really want it, then importing or downloading it is the only way I will own it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryCook Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Most of the difference in prices is not the hard working person behind the counter serving us, it's the retailers themselves and the cost of the premises they occupy. As an example, Jerry Harvey has enough money, I don't feel any obligation to fill his pockets any further. If he was bit more proactive in sourcing from the manufacturers at world competitive prices then maybe we wouldn't be paying so much in Australia. I totally object to the "Australia Tax" that most retailers apply just because they think they can get away with it. Similarly Frank Lowie, no need to fill his pockets either, with the ridiculous retail space leasing costs that Westfield charges. If we continue to blindly pay exorbitant prices then they will continue to charge them. Lessons need to be learnt and it's up to consumers to teach them, not encourage them. Cheers Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSmith Posted September 28, 2016 Author Share Posted September 28, 2016 Local bluray's have been quire reasonable compared to Amazon for some time... in fact on most titles they are simply cheaper here once you factor in conversion and shipping. JSmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoggieHowser Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Yeah was pleasantly surprised by the pricing on the two Star Trek UHD titles even before the 20% off. New titles are still a pain though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunteer Kazz Posted September 28, 2016 Volunteer Share Posted September 28, 2016 (edited) 14 hours ago, JSmith said: Local bluray's have been quire reasonable compared to Amazon for some time... in fact on most titles they are simply cheaper here once you factor in conversion and shipping. JSmith New releases are also being released here before the US quite often of late,, and Sanity have come in quite a bit cheaper than JB on pre-orders quite a few times as well (on 4k anyway). Edited September 28, 2016 by Kazz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryCook Posted September 30, 2016 Share Posted September 30, 2016 (edited) Let's try X-Men Apocalypse; Sanity DVD - $24.99, BD = $29.99, BD 3D = $36.99, 4K = $34.99 JB Hi Fi - DVD = $19.98, BD = $29.98, BD 3D = $36.98, 4K = $44.98 Amazon UK - DVD = $16.93, BD = $25.41, BD 3D = $33.8, 4K = $33.88 That's using 0.59 as the exchange rate, I just bought some UKP at 0.5881 from OFX. For sure there is freight to be added, last time I bought 6 BD's plus a couple of CD's and it worked out at less than $2 each. A comparison at the time, which doesn't seem much different now, was that I got the 6 x BD's and the 2 x CD's for less than 5 x BD's would have cost buying locally. Cheers Gary Edited September 30, 2016 by GaryCook Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSmith Posted September 30, 2016 Author Share Posted September 30, 2016 Amazon US was what is being discussed. Nonetheless, anyone can find a few examples where things may be cheaper. I won't bother trying to prove you wrong... JSmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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