@bashort wrote:
The giant corporations of the world are trying to get to where they control every item that they manufacture from cradle to grave, they want to tell you, after you pay for it what you can do with it, who can repair it, how long you can use it , and never allow it to be resold, that is just for the items without a processor, any item with a processor will be moved to a monthly subscription model if something is not done to stop this nonsense.
Depends on perspectives really.
Counterfeiting is a big issue, a 200 Billion Dollar per year issue and escalating. No it's not just China's production, some of the well known, Russia, Mexico, Germany, Asian Ring and sellers of the stuff are all over the globe even here in the USA. Allot of that 200 Billions dollars is not some fella(s) getting by per se, its organized crime and not used to by Pineapples, many other places, furthering drug trafficking, purchase of weapons and not I'm talking some handguns, military grade weapons and more. It's not just about manufacturers or retailers being hurt but that's a big part of it to. The money from counterfeiting gets laundered into "Clean money" and that also impacts folks, even you and me. Now the scale of it which is growing makes say the old "Mafia" look like childs play. Imagine you having a manufacturing business that supplies high-end stores with high end goods. Now imagine me able to go in and take money right out of you're bank account, millions of dollars and others do same. That is basically what goes on at the end of the string. 200 Billion Dollars annually and growing that is more than many nations entire Gross Domestic Product.
Manufacturers and retailers and distributorships have differing issues. They dont care if mom & pop buy Widget X and care resell it. They do care about resellers who USE them (keyword USE as in "Being Used") for personal gain and so would you if you worked or owned the manufacturer, retailer or distributorship. I like to use the Playstation scenario or new hot toys whereby resellers snarf the stuff up in retail when products are introduced then gouge consumers who cannot get said items at MSRP in retail stores. Those consumers get very upset at the retailers, they get gouged by resellers who are not even authorized to sell the items and they do so for personal profit. Now if Walmart, Target, BestBuy lets say engaged in that you'd see lawsuits flying all over the place from Attorney Generals. There is much more to these scenarios but for resellers to say, "Oh its corporate greed" when in fact they are the ones taking advantage of consumers. It happens across a very wide range of products whereby consumers are denied/gouged whereby resellers profit it upon it, thats not corporate greed, its reseller greed. Folks who do retail arbitrage of current products are literally killing what they care do to make a living, it comes full circle.
There are very valid points on both sides of the reseller / supply chain discussion and MANY a manufacturer has no issue at all working with resellers but the resellers don't engage it nor do they find the margins acceptable. But if they happen to be gouged or consumers take advantage of them? Well... That's a different story.
Regulatory actions against open marketplace and marketplace sellers online is not the doing of the marketplaces or the buyers, its all on the sellers. But you really have to look at the problems from every angle not just that of "I'm a reseller" because if you in the position of any of those other entities you're viewpoint is going to be the same as theirs and they are valid viewpoints. You're not buying as a consumer, you're buying to resell for profit, a competitor.
Now all that said, I am against the legislation that's being proposed for several reasons which include singling out online resellers versus brick and mortar as well. Why should eBay be damaged as a company due to the actions of resellers? If I've a brick and mortar game store and use Gamestop or Walmart as my supply when things are on sale or not I'm engaging in a predatory business conduct. Those laws just need be to applied online... The first time an online reseller get's hit with paying Gamestop's $22,000+ legal bill as a result of using them for sourcing, their arbitrage will end quickly.
But arbitrage is not against the law, predatory conducts are. We'd a chain of game stores where I live some years back. They had ten or so locations, one in each of three large malls in fact. They'd hit Walmart over the holidays snarfing up games on sale putting them in their retail stores. One customer found out, contacted Walmart, Walmart had it on camera's and filed with the NY State Attorney General. I dont know the outcomes except for the fact all their stores were closed by the State AG.
It's one of my theories as to why Adyen is now eBay's aggregate card processor. That the company foresee's at some point this all comes to a head and since Adyen also vends merchant accounts that brings arbitrage closer into play. Manufacturer ask's for sourcing of those Playstation Six's and seller supplies a Best Buy receipt... Best Buy can end that merchant account and thus the seller via a predatory conduct filing in a court. Maybe I'm in left field but it'd make some sense and ultimately shields eBay from any liability. People care blame eBay for everything when in fact its sellers or buyers, not eBay. eBay provides a mechanism of transacting and wants every transaction to be perfect. It's sellers and buyers who cause problems.
