Posted by Rich Clark on 05/27/06 23:20

<thad@thadlabs.com> wrote in message
news:1148760206.727514.33560@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> Justin wrote:
>> Huh, when DVD players first came out I could buy a player for what? $500
>> or more. Not long after that I could buy the same player for $200. Does
>> that seem right to you?
>
> One could (reasonably) argue DVD players should be free because they're
> worthless without media which must be purchased.

Perhaps for the same value of "reasonable" that usually gets people
arrested.
>
> There's precedent for this:
>
> 1. original Polaroid cameras (must buy [proprietary] film)
>
> 2. Gillette razors (must buy [proprietary] blades)

DVDs aren't proprietary; anybody can make one. And note that there are many
brands of "Gilette compatible" blades on the market, not that it matters.

If Circut City had been smart (to follow the part of your argument that
really is resonable), when they introduced the DIVX scheme of pay-as-you-go
discs, they should have given away free players that only played DIVX discs.
You would also be able to buy a player that also played regular discs, but
the free player would play only the rent-and-discard versions. Free players
would probably have launched the format without all the acrimony from DVD
collectors that ultimately killed the scheme.

RichC

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