jick
Refugee
The Ultimate U2 HTDAAB Experience consists of buying one or more of the following items:
MUSIC:
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb $13.98
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Limited Edition $22.99
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Vinyl Edition $34.99
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Deluxe Edition $34.99
Vertigo, Part 1 $5.99
Vertigo, Part 2 $9.99
All Because Of You $9.49
ELECTRONICS:
Apple iPod U2 Special Edition $349.00
DOWNLOADS:
Vertigo $0.99
The Complete U2 (with iPod discount coupon) $99.99
FANCLUB:
U2.com Membership $40.00
CONCERT TICKETS:
Floor $52.50
Seating $163.00
TOTAL = $837.90!!!!!!
HTDAAB: Releasing three versions of the album forces their large stable of hardcore collectors happy, promotes multiple purchases by single customers, and ultimately increases album sales to ensure high chart positions and great hype, which draws in non-fans or casual fans to buy. Brilliant.
VERTIGO: Multiple copies of the same single when all those tracks could fit in one single once again promotes maximization in sales.
ELECTRONICS: The hottest digital music player in the planet with the band whose fans have the most purchasing power (older demographic that covers the working class as opposed to the students) - just add some facsimile signatures in the back and change the color - and then you can jack up the price by $50 - the only way in which to justify it is ....
DIGITAL: ...a discount coupon for the Complete U2. With the discount, it is down to "only" $99.99! Wow, what a steal.
U2.COM: This is the only place to get ticket presales to ensure you won't be closed out of the tour. There are a few other things that come with membership but the real lure is the presales which in turn forces the member to buy ....
CONCERT TICKETS: The reasonable prices for standing are perfect for the college student crowd - affordable and they have the patience to line up early to catch a good location. Seating tickets will put you well away from the action, but these are the older ones who don't like to get down and dirty with the kids and want to feel like they are in a balcony seat watching broadway. So for the crappier locations which are preferred by the over-40 fan demographic, U2 smartly priced it at $163.00 because these are working people who can afford it anyway. Brilliant pricing scheme if you ask me!
OTHER FACTORS: Some may buy two copies of the deluxe edition - one to collect and the other to open up and read. The ticket estimates contemplate one seating and one standing seat. Some might buy two seating seats, or those in Europe will be able to buy four tickets. And this is only all about presale. Others will also attend other shows in additions to the ones they bagged in presale. There are also those who buy online so shipping charges will apply. To those who buy over the counter, there are also corresponding taxes. Don't forget the website merchandise where many members will actually exercise their one-time 25% discount.
Considering all the other factors, we are actually looking at around $1,000 spent this year alone by the hardcore U2 fan. The album cd and the singles are the ones most prone to illegal distribution (mp3, etc) and these consist of roughly 5% of the money that will be spent on U2. By bundling a DVD (which is not as easy to illegally convert, upload, and distribute ) or a book (this is obvious) to their album cds, U2 add value that cannot be found in illegal downloads. By joining the legal download fray (iTunes), U2 face the illegal distribution channels head on. And by redirecting their revenue sources to products that cannot be illegally distributed (iPod, website membership, iTunes, concert tickets), U2 assure themselves of the maximum profit.
Most of us are in Interference because we are hardcore fans, hardcore collectors, or even completists. Now that U2 have saturated the market with so many new products accessory to the actual 50-minute 11-song album, many feel that they must own these products or be left behind. U2 have given us too many options.
If you look at U2's latest business model, the ones hit most badly are us - the harcore U2 fan/completist/collector. We spent so much on U2 in the past already, yet U2 still want to milk us some more. This is a good business idea in the sense that the hardcore U2 fans who have followed the band since the 80's are working and earning by now, so they can afford. It is also good in the sense that we hardore fans have more products to buy. But it is bad if you look at it as U2 making money off their closest fans. I think the correct model should have been to find ways to gain new fans and target them instead in their proft-driven schemes. They shouldn't have targeted the loyal hardcore fans who have already given too much to U2 over the years.
Don't you all just wish it were back to the old days when you could just go to the record store to buy the album and not feel left behind or lacking?
Cheers,
J
MUSIC:
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb $13.98
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Limited Edition $22.99
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Vinyl Edition $34.99
How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Deluxe Edition $34.99
Vertigo, Part 1 $5.99
Vertigo, Part 2 $9.99
All Because Of You $9.49
ELECTRONICS:
Apple iPod U2 Special Edition $349.00
DOWNLOADS:
Vertigo $0.99
The Complete U2 (with iPod discount coupon) $99.99
FANCLUB:
U2.com Membership $40.00
CONCERT TICKETS:
Floor $52.50
Seating $163.00
TOTAL = $837.90!!!!!!
HTDAAB: Releasing three versions of the album forces their large stable of hardcore collectors happy, promotes multiple purchases by single customers, and ultimately increases album sales to ensure high chart positions and great hype, which draws in non-fans or casual fans to buy. Brilliant.
VERTIGO: Multiple copies of the same single when all those tracks could fit in one single once again promotes maximization in sales.
ELECTRONICS: The hottest digital music player in the planet with the band whose fans have the most purchasing power (older demographic that covers the working class as opposed to the students) - just add some facsimile signatures in the back and change the color - and then you can jack up the price by $50 - the only way in which to justify it is ....
DIGITAL: ...a discount coupon for the Complete U2. With the discount, it is down to "only" $99.99! Wow, what a steal.
U2.COM: This is the only place to get ticket presales to ensure you won't be closed out of the tour. There are a few other things that come with membership but the real lure is the presales which in turn forces the member to buy ....
CONCERT TICKETS: The reasonable prices for standing are perfect for the college student crowd - affordable and they have the patience to line up early to catch a good location. Seating tickets will put you well away from the action, but these are the older ones who don't like to get down and dirty with the kids and want to feel like they are in a balcony seat watching broadway. So for the crappier locations which are preferred by the over-40 fan demographic, U2 smartly priced it at $163.00 because these are working people who can afford it anyway. Brilliant pricing scheme if you ask me!
OTHER FACTORS: Some may buy two copies of the deluxe edition - one to collect and the other to open up and read. The ticket estimates contemplate one seating and one standing seat. Some might buy two seating seats, or those in Europe will be able to buy four tickets. And this is only all about presale. Others will also attend other shows in additions to the ones they bagged in presale. There are also those who buy online so shipping charges will apply. To those who buy over the counter, there are also corresponding taxes. Don't forget the website merchandise where many members will actually exercise their one-time 25% discount.
Considering all the other factors, we are actually looking at around $1,000 spent this year alone by the hardcore U2 fan. The album cd and the singles are the ones most prone to illegal distribution (mp3, etc) and these consist of roughly 5% of the money that will be spent on U2. By bundling a DVD (which is not as easy to illegally convert, upload, and distribute ) or a book (this is obvious) to their album cds, U2 add value that cannot be found in illegal downloads. By joining the legal download fray (iTunes), U2 face the illegal distribution channels head on. And by redirecting their revenue sources to products that cannot be illegally distributed (iPod, website membership, iTunes, concert tickets), U2 assure themselves of the maximum profit.
Most of us are in Interference because we are hardcore fans, hardcore collectors, or even completists. Now that U2 have saturated the market with so many new products accessory to the actual 50-minute 11-song album, many feel that they must own these products or be left behind. U2 have given us too many options.
If you look at U2's latest business model, the ones hit most badly are us - the harcore U2 fan/completist/collector. We spent so much on U2 in the past already, yet U2 still want to milk us some more. This is a good business idea in the sense that the hardcore U2 fans who have followed the band since the 80's are working and earning by now, so they can afford. It is also good in the sense that we hardore fans have more products to buy. But it is bad if you look at it as U2 making money off their closest fans. I think the correct model should have been to find ways to gain new fans and target them instead in their proft-driven schemes. They shouldn't have targeted the loyal hardcore fans who have already given too much to U2 over the years.
Don't you all just wish it were back to the old days when you could just go to the record store to buy the album and not feel left behind or lacking?
Cheers,
J