Talking about Japanese products.. It is interesting that the Playstation 4 will not be available in Japan until February 2014 while it will be released in US and Europe this month. If I was in Japan I would be pissed. [/quote]
To think how many times I felt pissed that the Japan launch happened 6 months before us......how things have changed.
Talking about Japanese products.. It is interesting that the Playstation 4 will not be available in Japan until February 2014 while it will be released in US and Europe this month. If I was in Japan I would be pissed.
To think how many times I felt pissed that the Japan launch happened 6 months before us......how things have changed.
Perhaps the Japanese people have a different time of the year they spend themselves into poverty then the U.S. people???
We were told when the first iPhone hit Japan years ago that it will (sic) big failure!!
You're right, it was. The Japanese were using emoji characters a lot in their text communications and the iPhone lacked that completely. Emoji is not integrated into the iPhone now.
Even though China has a much larger population, the vast majority live below what we would consider minimum wage. Unless China's middle and upperclass sees tremendous growth, I doubt they will surpass Japan as a market for premium smartphones anytime soon.
We were told when the first iPhone hit Japan years ago that it will big failure!!
Talking about Japanese products.. It is interesting that the Playstation 4 will not be available in Japan until February 2014 while it will be released in US and Europe this month. If I was in Japan I would be pissed.
The main reason the PS4 is coming out later in Japan is due to the lack of Japanese games at launch. Sony wants to release the game with not just Western games like BF4, FIFA 14, etc.
I don't want to rain on the parade but isn't part of the reason for the explosive growth in iPhones at least due to the fact the NTT Docomo, the largest carrier in Japan, finally woke up and started selling the iPhone?
Also the premium is relative I think. Is it a 15% premium relative to phones sold outside Japan or is it in comparison to local offerings? I think it's the former they are talking about. While this is great for Apple, it is also likely the case for many other companies and products. Japan tends to be more expensive for a lot of things. A cup of coffee might cost 600 yen ($6), I'm guessing that's a pretty healthy margin over a similar cup sold in the U.S.
Having said all this there are still many strong reasons for why the iPhone is so popular in Japan. Apple itself has traditionally been very popular in Japan. I remember before the Apple Stores came out there used to be a 6 story store that sold only Apple products at Akihabara that wasn't even Apple run and operated.
It’s called supply and demand. No one is twisting Japanese arms to buy Apple products. Apple products are not essential to Japanese lifestyle. Apple is not a monopoly in Japan. The Japanese consumer has numerous alternatives to Apple products but they choose to buy Apple at the asking price. Since when is this profiteering. Do you even know the meaning of the word? Selling gasoline at $5/gallon after the 9/11 attacks was profiteering.
Your post is stupid, ignorant, uninformed, useless, baseless, and typical of economically illiterate, uneducated sops and free-tards. It is just as stupid as those who ignorantly claim Apple has an illegal monopoly on its own products. Stupidity knows no bounds.
I agree but you really shouldn't have held back so much on your opinion of his post ...
I imagine that if you review the economic statistics and discover what China's per capita GDP is, you might adjust your expectations. There are a lot of wealthy Chinese nowadays, wealthy as in enjoying incomes comparable to Japan's per capita GDP, but I seriously doubt this demographic would be larger than Japan's total population. So yeah, fully opening up the China market for Apple is big, but 'even bigger' than Japah? Nah.
Take a deep breath, ok and now take another, let the anger flow from your body.
Feel better? I hope so.
Ok, perhaps profiteering was not the correct word. And you are correct, no one is forced to buy Apple products. I concede being able charge one set of customers far more than other customers for the same product and getting away with it makes good business sense.
And perhaps the fact that in the UK we get regularly shafted by Apple, although usually by only 8-10% as opposed to 15% is why I feel for Apple’s customers in Japan.
You see, it’s annoying and does tend to make one look for alternatives, I accept that the world is not fair and despite your feelings about me I am not actually naïve, or stupid or…. Whatever else your triad cared to mention.
I am a strong supporter of Apple as a company, heck if I was on commission basis for the number of people I have switched to the Mac alone I’d be quite a bit better off financially.
But you see, for me personally I find that going from an average of 30-35% mark up (which is already the highest in the industry by a huge margin all by itself) to 50% mark up just because you can as greedy and abhorrent.
Sure, I will continue to buy Apple’s products for as long as I feel they remain the best, but don’t expect me to feel the same way as you do about their pricing strategy.
I used to bristle, be all indignant, about Apple's margins. Then I bought some Apple stock and now my incentive structure and point of view has completely change. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That has never been so true!
iPhone 5S is free with 2 years contract. Android devices are also offered with the same pricing structure. If both are free, why should people buy Android?
Take a deep breath, ok and now take another, let the anger flow from your body.
Feel better? I hope so.
Ok, perhaps profiteering was not the correct word. And you are correct, no one is forced to buy Apple products. I concede being able charge one set of customers far more than other customers for the same product and getting away with it makes good business sense.
And perhaps the fact that in the UK we get regularly shafted by Apple, although usually by only 8-10% as opposed to 15% is why I feel for Apple’s customers in Japan.
You see, it’s annoying and does tend to make one look for alternatives, I accept that the world is not fair and despite your feelings about me I am not actually naïve, or stupid or…. Whatever else your triad cared to mention.
I am a strong supporter of Apple as a company, heck if I was on commission basis for the number of people I have switched to the Mac alone I’d be quite a bit better off financially.
But you see, for me personally I find that going from an average of 30-35% mark up (which is already the highest in the industry by a huge margin all by itself) to 50% mark up just because you can as greedy and abhorrent.
Sure, I will continue to buy Apple’s products for as long as I feel they remain the best, but don’t expect me to feel the same way as you do about their pricing strategy.
Actually, margins for products sold in different locations can vary all over the place, not just with Apple. And to say that 50% is greedy is just nonsense. For instance, markups historically for things like furniture have been 100% (meaning a 50% gross margin) at the retail level. And since Apple sells directly as a retailer, there is nothing wrong with a 50% markup. As to the fluctuations in pricing by country, that could very well be based on specific costs for doing business in that country, such as import / export fees, operating costs, overhead, etc. For instance, here in China where I currently live, Apple products are 17% more expensive at retail because the government slaps a 17% tax on every Apple product because they are a foreign company, even though the products are made here. As to Japan, it is historically an expensive place to do business so Apple probably is recouping "excessive" operating costs within the margin. Taking a look at England, I would be willing to bet you will find a similar scenario.
Lastly, just because all the other electronics manufacturers don't know how to make money doesn't mean Apple shouldn't.
Even though China has a much larger population, the vast majority live below what we would consider minimum wage. Unless China's middle and upperclass sees tremendous growth, I doubt they will surpass Japan as a market for premium smartphones anytime soon.
Actually you need to study up on China. They now have a middle class that is larger than that of the US. Further, they will save for months to buy a single luxury product, even if they have a low salary. They are now the second largest luxury goods market in the world, and are estimated to reach the number one position within the next few years based on current trends.
You're right, it was. The Japanese were using emoji characters a lot in their text communications and the iPhone lacked that completely. Emoji is not integrated into the iPhone now.
Go back and learn about Emoji keyboard in Settings. I used it since iPhone 3G.
I live in a small town in Japan, and most people here have iPhones. It was a surprise to me, because I had had the media-influenced notion that Japanese did not use the iPhone much.
I think Apple's marketshare in Japan can only go up. In general, Japanese are fairly conformist, so if something becomes an established norm (like owning an iPhone), almost everyone will do the same.
Comments
[/quote]
To think how many times I felt pissed that the Japan launch happened 6 months before us......how things have changed.
Note the "face" expression made up by the last few characters.
Perhaps the Japanese people have a different time of the year they spend themselves into poverty then the U.S. people???
You're right, it was. The Japanese were using emoji characters a lot in their text communications and the iPhone lacked that completely. Emoji is not integrated into the iPhone now.
I imagine that China will be even bigger.
Even though China has a much larger population, the vast majority live below what we would consider minimum wage. Unless China's middle and upperclass sees tremendous growth, I doubt they will surpass Japan as a market for premium smartphones anytime soon.
I guess you don't buy Starbucks, Coke, Wine, etc.
No not at all, I love coca cola and good South African wine, they are items that have the advantage of always being on special somewhere.
We were told when the first iPhone hit Japan years ago that it will big failure!!
Talking about Japanese products.. It is interesting that the Playstation 4 will not be available in Japan until February 2014 while it will be released in US and Europe this month. If I was in Japan I would be pissed.
The main reason the PS4 is coming out later in Japan is due to the lack of Japanese games at launch. Sony wants to release the game with not just Western games like BF4, FIFA 14, etc.
I don't want to rain on the parade but isn't part of the reason for the explosive growth in iPhones at least due to the fact the NTT Docomo, the largest carrier in Japan, finally woke up and started selling the iPhone?
Also the premium is relative I think. Is it a 15% premium relative to phones sold outside Japan or is it in comparison to local offerings? I think it's the former they are talking about. While this is great for Apple, it is also likely the case for many other companies and products. Japan tends to be more expensive for a lot of things. A cup of coffee might cost 600 yen ($6), I'm guessing that's a pretty healthy margin over a similar cup sold in the U.S.
Having said all this there are still many strong reasons for why the iPhone is so popular in Japan. Apple itself has traditionally been very popular in Japan. I remember before the Apple Stores came out there used to be a 6 story store that sold only Apple products at Akihabara that wasn't even Apple run and operated.
Emoji has always been on the iPhone. It's under keyboard options.
I agree but you really shouldn't have held back so much on your opinion of his post ...
I imagine that China will be even bigger.
I imagine that if you review the economic statistics and discover what China's per capita GDP is, you might adjust your expectations. There are a lot of wealthy Chinese nowadays, wealthy as in enjoying incomes comparable to Japan's per capita GDP, but I seriously doubt this demographic would be larger than Japan's total population. So yeah, fully opening up the China market for Apple is big, but 'even bigger' than Japah? Nah.
Wow, just wow….. Calm down.
Who took the jam out of your doughnut?
Take a deep breath, ok and now take another, let the anger flow from your body.
Feel better? I hope so.
Ok, perhaps profiteering was not the correct word. And you are correct, no one is forced to buy Apple products. I concede being able charge one set of customers far more than other customers for the same product and getting away with it makes good business sense.
And perhaps the fact that in the UK we get regularly shafted by Apple, although usually by only 8-10% as opposed to 15% is why I feel for Apple’s customers in Japan.
You see, it’s annoying and does tend to make one look for alternatives, I accept that the world is not fair and despite your feelings about me I am not actually naïve, or stupid or…. Whatever else your triad cared to mention.
I am a strong supporter of Apple as a company, heck if I was on commission basis for the number of people I have switched to the Mac alone I’d be quite a bit better off financially.
But you see, for me personally I find that going from an average of 30-35% mark up (which is already the highest in the industry by a huge margin all by itself) to 50% mark up just because you can as greedy and abhorrent.
Sure, I will continue to buy Apple’s products for as long as I feel they remain the best, but don’t expect me to feel the same way as you do about their pricing strategy.
I used to bristle, be all indignant, about Apple's margins. Then I bought some Apple stock and now my incentive structure and point of view has completely change. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That has never been so true!
Wait, I thought that everyone in Asia wanted 6-inch "phablets" made out of plastic?! This story CANNOT be true!
Wow, just wow….. Calm down.
Who took the jam out of your doughnut?
Take a deep breath, ok and now take another, let the anger flow from your body.
Feel better? I hope so.
Ok, perhaps profiteering was not the correct word. And you are correct, no one is forced to buy Apple products. I concede being able charge one set of customers far more than other customers for the same product and getting away with it makes good business sense.
And perhaps the fact that in the UK we get regularly shafted by Apple, although usually by only 8-10% as opposed to 15% is why I feel for Apple’s customers in Japan.
You see, it’s annoying and does tend to make one look for alternatives, I accept that the world is not fair and despite your feelings about me I am not actually naïve, or stupid or…. Whatever else your triad cared to mention.
I am a strong supporter of Apple as a company, heck if I was on commission basis for the number of people I have switched to the Mac alone I’d be quite a bit better off financially.
But you see, for me personally I find that going from an average of 30-35% mark up (which is already the highest in the industry by a huge margin all by itself) to 50% mark up just because you can as greedy and abhorrent.
Sure, I will continue to buy Apple’s products for as long as I feel they remain the best, but don’t expect me to feel the same way as you do about their pricing strategy.
Actually, margins for products sold in different locations can vary all over the place, not just with Apple. And to say that 50% is greedy is just nonsense. For instance, markups historically for things like furniture have been 100% (meaning a 50% gross margin) at the retail level. And since Apple sells directly as a retailer, there is nothing wrong with a 50% markup. As to the fluctuations in pricing by country, that could very well be based on specific costs for doing business in that country, such as import / export fees, operating costs, overhead, etc. For instance, here in China where I currently live, Apple products are 17% more expensive at retail because the government slaps a 17% tax on every Apple product because they are a foreign company, even though the products are made here. As to Japan, it is historically an expensive place to do business so Apple probably is recouping "excessive" operating costs within the margin. Taking a look at England, I would be willing to bet you will find a similar scenario.
Lastly, just because all the other electronics manufacturers don't know how to make money doesn't mean Apple shouldn't.
Even though China has a much larger population, the vast majority live below what we would consider minimum wage. Unless China's middle and upperclass sees tremendous growth, I doubt they will surpass Japan as a market for premium smartphones anytime soon.
Actually you need to study up on China. They now have a middle class that is larger than that of the US. Further, they will save for months to buy a single luxury product, even if they have a low salary. They are now the second largest luxury goods market in the world, and are estimated to reach the number one position within the next few years based on current trends.
If anything the Japanese would be biased against the USA.
I realized this is not a complete sentence.
You're right, it was. The Japanese were using emoji characters a lot in their text communications and the iPhone lacked that completely. Emoji is not integrated into the iPhone now.
Go back and learn about Emoji keyboard in Settings. I used it since iPhone 3G.
I live in a small town in Japan, and most people here have iPhones. It was a surprise to me, because I had had the media-influenced notion that Japanese did not use the iPhone much.
I think Apple's marketshare in Japan can only go up. In general, Japanese are fairly conformist, so if something becomes an established norm (like owning an iPhone), almost everyone will do the same.