Your comments contradict each other... On the first one you say "they are just a distribution platform","it's the dev", "they don't control prices"... But on the last one you say different stores take different %... So it's not just the dev, they DO control the final price, and THAT's the answer to his question as to why simmarket would be cheaper in that case...

 

Edit: also that paradigm exists EVERYWHERE, that's what "msrp" is... If then some stores decide to male less profit and offer sales that's a different story.

 

 

 

How do my comment contradict themselves? This really isn't a difficult concept to understand, sir. Let's walk through it - A developer needs $15.00 for each unit sold to reach their equilibrium. Distributor A takes a 25% cut and Distributor B takes a 40% cut. Therefore, to make $15 per unit, the developer must sell their software for $20.00 on site A and $24.50 on Site B. HOWEVER, the developer can CHOOSE to sell their product for $20.00 on Site B too; although, they will only make $12.00 per unit. Yet, this revenue reduction maybe acceptable to the developer if site B has a capacity to sell higher volumes; thus, reducing the cost per unit to reach said desired equilibrium. It is, however, 100% in control of the developer. If you don't believe me, you can contact the sales departments from each platform and obtain a copy of their developer contracts. There's no elephant or nefarious activity going on....

 

Concerning your MRSP statement, you're confusing retailers with brokers; to that point, it's not an Apples to Apples comparison. The latter receives a portion of the units sold, which is what SimMarket, FSPilotShop, etc represent. Unlike retailers, brokers do not set sale prices; they simply provide a mechanism for the manufacture/developer to sell their goods.

 

 

Be fair to the distributors; they're doing NOTHING wrong (i.e. no elephant in the room)!

Very nice explanation, but you're forgetting the most inportant thing: they prices ARE different, and almost always more expensive at fspilotshop...

 

Very nice explanation, but you're forgetting the most inportant thing: they prices ARE different, and almost always more expensive at fspilotshop...

 

 

 

I assume that's because of thier higher %, Raven. One thing I noted about Simmarket, they appear to sell higher volumes to the European market while FSPilotShop does a bulk of thier business in the US market; perhaps that explains the price difference? Anyways, like you, Simmarket is my preferred vendor; I like how you can download ANY of your previous purchases without paying a fee. I will pay a lil extra for that convenience. Anyways, good discussion, sir!

 

 

I've never bought a PacSim title but I've heard some good things.

 

I just got Taipei from Pacsim and like it.

About Aerosoft on sale: Check out this link to Simplanets store. Maybe it's worth comparing prices.

 

http://www.sim-planet.com/en/search?orderby=position&orderway=desc&search_query=assu16&submit_search=Search&utm_source=Simplanet+Newsletter&utm_campaign=9a3d860620-SimPlanet+Newsletter+June+2016+%238&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c8ddd4ec5e-9a3d860620-184612649&mc_cid=9a3d860620&mc_eid=f16571f07a

PacSim airports are top notch and I have also had excellent customer service from them. I just picked up Taipei and have Manila, Xiamen, Nagasaki, and some others. Not only do they look great but the performance is great as well. Probably picking up Chubu Centrair during the sale. Highly recommended.

 

Cheers, Pete

 

 

I've wanted Venice but I wonder about P3D compatibility there. Any thoughts?

 

Gregg, Venice works well enough for me in P3D 3.2.

Be aware that the airport itself is showing it's age somewhat but Venice itself looks great, I can pick out the square (campo) I stayed in two years ago and where I will be back to in a couple of weeks.

P3D's AA does the scenery no favours but I still enjoy LIPZ especially as a short hop from LOWI

Be warned guys. Fs pilot shop charges to reactivate expired download links. No email to warn you , it just quietly happens

seriously who does that?

No need to pay  anything  if  you make  a back up copy  of  your  download  to a cd  or  external

No need to pay  anything  if  you make  a back up copy  of  your  download  to a cd  or  exteranl

In a perfect world ? and what if that external drive fails..

One month ago I had a 2 TB drive fail with ALL of my downloads plus my ORBX junction link. So I went and bought 2 hard drives. One for a back up and the other for a back up of the back up so it never happens again. 

 

A CD? I would need a thousand of them! Some people just dont have the $$ for a back up drive, thats life..

 

My point is FS pilot shop are the only company doing this. Its not advertised and just plain sneaky IMO

I think it is advertised somewhere. What is not advertised is that they reset the expiration when the file gets updated.

Of course it would be nice if you could reactivate for free, but having your own backup is so important in so many ways.

And if people don't have the $$ for a backup drive, they don't have the $$ for buying so much from these shops either :smile:

 

But yes, I try to buy elsewhere, too, unless their sale is so good that the reactivation fee ($4.95) would not matter, or the other options have worse limits, e.g. only 3 downloads at the Carenado and Alabeo stores (is it possible to reactivate the links there?)

 

 

A CD? I would need a thousand of them

 

than  you must have a lot  of  addons  than  if  you need  a  thousand

than  you must have a lot  of  addons  than  if  you need  a  thousand

CDs only hold 800MB, so 1000 is "just" 800 GB.

 

If you like VRF, just the MSE collection for the US if over 1.2 TB, so yes, you would need more than 1000...

CDs only hold 800MB, so 1000 is "just" 800 GB.

 

If you like VRF, just the MSE collection for the US if over 1.2 TB, so yes, you would need more than 1000...

spot on! 814 GB to be precise and its mostly ORBX ,MSE, meshes and random payware stuff and its by no means a lot of coverage on a global scale its peanuts

 

What are you taking about? Obviously manufacturers/developers alter prices based on several factors; to that point, not every item you purchase is the exact same price in every store. In what world does that paradigm exist? It varies based on several market factors (e.g. region and demographics); it's up to the consumer to do their research and find the best price available.  Additionally, prices will fluctuate based on the distributors "cut."  Specifically, if Simmarket takes 25% of each sale, and PilotShop takes 40%, items sold via the latter will have higher price points. Perhaps PilotShop can justify the higher "cuts" based on network traffic (i.e. they have x amount of page hits above their competitors).  From a developers perspective, maybe their software isn't selling well on a specific platform; thus, they feel compelled to offer a sale price to attract more sales via that venue.  There's also the difference in currency exchange to consider, which depends on the operating locatiosn of the developers and/or distributors. There are countless possibilities to explain the price gaps; however, neither PilotShop nor Simmarket sets sale prices...that's up to the developers.   I'm curious to understand, exactly, what you're implying?  Are you suggesting some nefarious activity?   

 

this is legal non-sense... no manufacturer has the right to control a price of a good sold through a third party! there have been many competitive lawsuits where big boys thought they could do exactly that, even if it was not obvious. They paid for it at the end.

 

there is no trick. often it is just down to exchange rates or specific limited promos etc.... and if there is a real difference and you prefer to buy at your preferred shop, than a) pay more or b) contact your shop and let them know there is a cheaper offer. Most of the time they will align, and often they are not aware.

 

 

often it is just down to exchange rates

which is what is stopping me making the buys now as the £ currently yo-yos