On 2/14/2009 7:01 PM, Mueen Nawaz wrote:
> Chambers wrote:
>> I'm willing to bet that we could have converter boxes for<$20 right now
>> if Congress hadn't come up with that coupon plan.
>>
>> After all, if you know for a fact that every item you sell has a $40
>> discount, doesn't it make sense to sell it for $40+x?
>
> 	Nope. Let's say that without the coupon program, the only way to be
> profitable was to sell it at $45.

DTV has been around about as long as DVD players, and it looks like the 
converters will go away at about the same time as DVD players do (being 
replaced by BluRay and all).

Fully functional DVD players can be had for $20.  The converter boxes, 
lacking moving parts & a laser, *should* be even cheaper.  All you 
really need is a chip & a DAC.

Sure, they would have been quite expensive a few years ago, but by now 
they should be pretty cheap.  Looking online, however, the price has 
remained in the $50-$60 range for long enough that I'm certain the 
coupons have imposed an artificial floor on the price.

> 	Your analysis made the assumption that they *could* have been
> profitable by selling it at less than $40 - an unsupported assumption.

True, I'm not involved in the engineering of them, so I couldn't say. 
But, honestly, a dedicated-purpose CPU and a DAC?  I can't imagine it 
NOT being available for a lot less than it is.

-- 
...Chambers
www.pacificwebguy.com

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