Pricing: Apple Defies Australian Government

daria42 writes "This week it was revealed that Apple has still not responded to Australia's Federal Parliament on the issue of why the prices of its products are significantly higher in Australia than they are in the US, five months after the query was first raised by a member of parliament from Australia's governing Labor party. Apple has refused to issue a statement on the matter or even acknowledge the issue. What will it take to get Apple to open up — a national enquiry?"

Comments

Well of course products in Oz are more expensive

[Rosco P. Coltrane]

Wouldn't you raise the price of your products if you had to sell each and every one of them with a Velcro pad to hang upside down?

Increased costs

[Beryllium Sphere(tm)]

It costs Apple extra money to prepare products for the Australian market by turning everything umop apisdn.

Re:Increased costs

[BeaverCleaver]

That's very clever to have done that upside down thing with plain text.

There are many products that are overly expensive in Australia compared with other countries. A few example based on the US market, which I'm most familiar with. I can buy a Leatherman at Walmart for about $60, or from a retailer in Australia for more like $200. A $25 cheap rifle scope from Walmart retails for about $60 in .au. Similar markups apply for other consumer optics - binoculars, small telescopes etc. Software, books, music, all these cost more in AUD than the equivalent in USD on the US market, even though the AUD is worth more.

I support a general inquiry into price gouging like this, but limiting the inquiry specifically to Apple products seems like publicity whoring, or a ploy to make the problem sound more isolated than it really is.

Amazing what a threat can do

[Chuck Chunder]

Apparantly they are keen to talk now.

Re:If you don't like it

[Anonymous Coward]

Normally I'd agree. If people don't like the price being set by Apple they should shop elsewhere. For hardware this does have limitations however as certain sectors 'require' apple products and as such you have to pay an unfair price. If your then running a business out of Australia this makes you less able to compete in a free market.

The simple solution should be to allow purchases of products anywhere in the world at a common price and then you pay the shipping.

The problem with that solution is warranty returns/service.

HOWEVER what mainly started the inquest into the price difference wasn't actually hardware it was itunes and the price of music.

Re:Sad part

[Rosco P. Coltrane]

Payback is a bitch. That's what you get for sending us Rupert Murdoch.

Re:If you don't like it

[ShakaUVM]

>>You mean like the Galaxy Tab 10.1? It's barred from import into Australia due to Apple successfully winning an injunction against it due to patent disputes.

And you say iPad prices went up, too??

Man, that's a weird coincidence.

Re:Canucks & kiwis get price gouged as well.

[xav_jones]

Part of the problem is that they are small markets and as such have less competition. All the people erroneously claiming shipping costs, government taxes and consumer protection laws just don't seem to have a clue about how companies fix their pricing based on what the market will bear (i.e. what they can get away with). And of course, this is the essence of capitalism. In the case of Australia, since the market is smaller there is less competition and some companies -- I'm looking at you Canon -- go to great lengths to keep their fat profit margins that they cannot sustain in other markets.

Case in point, "the average price of a movie ticket in Australia for 2010 was AUD$12.98. In the United States, though, the average ticket cost just $US7.89 (approximately AUD$7.40)" [1]

Having said all that, I don't mind the government looking out for it's people who are being priced gouged.

Oh, and any American who thinks this kind of complaint seems a bit whiny (and are under the delusion that there is much a consumer can do about it) you all squealed like stuck pigs when your gasoline hit $4 a gallon for goodness sakes.

[1] http://www.choice.com.au/reviews-and-tests/money/shopping-and-legal/shopping/cinema-rip-offs/page/do-the-math.aspx

Who mentioned the iPad?

[Namarrgon]

Certainly not TFA. My beef is with the iTunes store - to buy an album here costs AU$17.00 (US$17.63), a huge hike over the $10 price the US enjoys.

If I wanted an iPad, I could always import one from the US, but I can't buy an album from the US iTunes store; they refuse to sell it to me, which is a restriction of trade under Australian law, and something the ACCC has ruled is illegal, at least when applied to physical music media like CDs.

Re:Free Market?

[XDirtypunkX]

Actually, many Australians do import from Hong Kong and it is relatively painless as long as you make sure you are using a reputable importer. Even with the cost of shipping from Hong Kong and the importer's mark up, you still often only pay 2/3rds of what it would cost from an Australian retailer.

Re:Everything costs more in Australia

[Anonymous Coward]

In Australia, a 2010 Camaro SS with 2,900km on it is $118,000 (USD=$123,000)

2011 SS starts at $127,500 AUD.

MP is not PM

[517714]

The title of the story is inflammatory as this MP is NOT the Australian Government. Apple was justified in not responding. A member of Parliament has no standing to ask such a question with the expectation of receiving an answer.