Multichoice - Price Fixing?

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Nips

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Why is it that wherever you look, an HD PVR costs R2999 - whether that's from Multichoice or anywhere else. I had one outlet offer me it for R2899, but that was only 'cos I am also thinking about getting a new TV from them.

When something is available from multiple outlets for the same price I get suspicious - didn't Toyota get fined for something like that a couple of years back?
 
Its the recommended price, but AFAIK they can run specials if they want. Around Xmas a few places had them for around for R2 700. I got mine for R2 200 a month after it came out with a Makro special
 
They have a recommended retail price. They distribute the decoders and regulate the price. If you get it for less, it's good. If you pay more, you are being ripped off. Nobody that sells decoders really makes a profit from it. They make their profit from the dishes and accessories. Price fixing is when different suppliers of similar products agree in secret to keep the prices at a certain level.
 
I got mine for R2200 as well at Makro. Early bird catches the worm, but sometimes also the bugs!
 
Yeah, you've got a point there. The competitions commision should really take a look into this. Maybe when the other service providers kick off, they'll have more basis to work off and then propose lower rates. Although, we never see the benefits of any fines from the competitions commision. They need to look into the Reccomended Retail Price that gets stipulated by producers. One would think they are not only limiting the consumer, but also the retailer. Or...one could suggest they are "protecting" the consumer from retailers pushing up the prices...just more for the CC or consumer rights protection guys to come in. I think (hope) the new consumer rights act will help us poor buggers out when it comes in later this year.
 
Nips said:
Why is it that wherever you look, an HD PVR costs R2999 - whether that's from Multichoice or anywhere else. I had one outlet offer me it for R2899, but that was only 'cos I am also thinking about getting a new TV from them.

When something is available from multiple outlets for the same price I get suspicious - didn't Toyota get fined for something like that a couple of years back?
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Apply your grey matter..... How many Multichoices are there ? How many motor manufactureres are there ?
 
Well if memory serves me correctly, Toyota got into trouble because they were restricting what their dealers were allowed to sell their cars for - i.e. they were preventing their dealers from competing with each other. It had nothing to do with other motor manufacturers. Maybe "price fixing" is the wrong term, but when everybody is selling for the same price (all R2999 - nobody even R2949, R2998, R3049 etc) it seems (note this is purely perception) like the "recommended retail price" is more of a "compulsory retail price", which is then preventing the various outlets from competing with each other. So maybe "anti-competitive behaviour" is a better term.

Of course if there are actually specials out their, and it is just coincidence that the 6 or 7 outlets I have been to all happen to have chosen R2999 as the best price, then I apologise to Multichoice (and please feel free to point me in the direction of any of these specials :-) )
 
From someone i know as a friend and in the TV business a medium sized guy, he does a lot of DSTV installation and he told us that he gets the decoder from multichoice for R2899 and sells it for R2999 because he cannot buy 10000 at a time he cannot get lower prices. Places like macro etc can buy 10000 at a time and thats why they can afford to have the specials they do have from time to time.
 
I guess then with only R100 margin to play with, nobody is going to go lower than R2999, and the price is in fact genuine and I'm just being overly cynical.
 
Nips said:
I guess then with only R100 margin to play with, nobody is going to go lower than R2999, and the price is in fact genuine and I'm just being overly cynical.
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Not necessarily! Is the unit really worth R2899? and due to no other competition, is that not worthy of investigation? Why has nobody else, designed or manufactured another decoder as an alternative? Unless i'm wrong, multichoice would just prevent their signal "codes" or whatever it may be, from being read by the opposition units. Competition rules. Look at all industries. Xbox / PS3, etc. They manipulating the market.
 
Wasp_21 said:
Not necessarily! Is the unit really worth R2899? and due to no other competition, is that not worthy of investigation? Why has nobody else, designed or manufactured another decoder as an alternative? Unless i'm wrong, multichoice would just prevent their signal "codes" or whatever it may be, from being read by the opposition units. Competition rules. Look at all industries. Xbox / PS3, etc. They manipulating the market.
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this same decoder is used in other countries ( Aus for one ) just wiht a diff simcard and not run by miltichoice.
 
The encryption is taken care of by the smartcard which is supplied by Irdetto. Basically the scrambler. MC then have a database of all the keys with subscribers details and what services they are allowed to view. When you plug in your smartcard it checks the database and delivers your services.
 
Ok, now i know better. Then surely there are different decoders to choose from? Maybe cheaper, or 1. are they not locally available? 2 or are they not compatible with the smart card available here?
 
Wasp_21 said:
Ok, now i know better. Then surely there are different decoders to choose from? Maybe cheaper, or 1. are they not locally available? 2 or are they not compatible with the smart card available here?
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Doubt you'll find anything locally and/or internationally, multichoice have ensured that by having their own software developers write the code.
Definitely isn't cross platform compatible
 
acidb said:
Doubt you'll find anything locally and/or internationally, multichoice have ensured that by having their own software developers write the code.
Definitely isn't cross platform compatible
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Exactly. They are just protecting their investment and making sure piracy is not possible... well almost.

I don't know why this thread was started. The only problem I have is that the bulk buyers (Makro, Game etc.) get a better price. This makes it very difficult for the smaller installation companies to be competitive with their equipment prices.
 
Quantum Theory said:
Exactly. They are just protecting their investment and making sure piracy is not possible... well almost.

I don't know why this thread was started. The only problem I have is that the bulk buyers (Makro, Game etc.) get a better price. This makes it very difficult for the smaller installation companies to be competitive with their equipment prices.
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Well thats exactly why i think the thread is open. Its at least a form of un-competition like behaviour, and it seems to be an acceptable form of business in SA. Our economy reeks of this form of business, where "fair trade" is really just a token thought. Big business limit small business growth, which ripple effects through our economy, and thus stagnating growth and puts greater pressure on our expendable income and us as consumers suffer. Apologies for the rant, but one wonders how we pay retail, and then you have "specials" where units are discounted by 20,30,40%. It's bordering on a cartel.
 
i can understand where the op is coming from. it seems strange that everyone sells it at the same price. does something like nik naks sell at the same price in evry shop?
 
Quantum Theory said:
They have a recommended retail price. They distribute the decoders and regulate the price. If you get it for less, it's good. If you pay more, you are being ripped off. Nobody that sells decoders really makes a profit from it. They make their profit from the dishes and accessories. Price fixing is when different suppliers of similar products agree in secret to keep the prices at a certain level.
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This is also price fixing.
 
Sackboy said:
This is also price fixing.
Click to expand...

Well, then we need to investigate the magazine publishing companies. My Popular Mechanics cost the same at CNA, PnP or my local Friendly Grocer... This is recommending a price openly. The bad kind of price fixing, that needs to be investigated, is where different companies are colluding to keep prices unnaturally high. Like the bread companies. That is price fixing.

EDIT: You might also want to look at monopoly.
 
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