In reality I suspect this is more to do with the insularity and lack of global awareness of the average American consumer. They are simply not used to buying outside the USA. Exchange rate variations and VAT are a daily ocurrence in Europe, where we often buy cross-border and can even see different versions of the same product for different markets, to cater for the variation in the consumer. Many Yanks idea of `cross-border` is to go to WalMart in the next town. ;)Allcott

>> You chose to buy from a site that quoted 33 Euros and said it didn't give refundsNo, I chose to buy from HiFiSim's web site. I didn't go shopping around on my own.I clicked on the "> Buy Now! <" button on HiFiSim's site right next to a price announcement of $37.99 USD. They chose to link me into SimMarket's checkout system, not me.Jason

However you got there, you bought from a site that prices in Euros and doesn't give refunds. If you had checked on those and didn't like them you could have used the back button on your browser and gone elsewhere. Instead you just blamed SimMarket.

Interesting, no boring argument about exchange rates, exchange rates dont matter for a downloaded product there is no reason for the product not to be exactly the same price around the world end of argument.For a supplier who has to pay for materials up front, that is different.I have often window shopped at simmarket, but because of the dubious none refund policy and tendency to rip off prices i never purchase there, i have purchased several flight 1 products and asv6 because of the refund/support policy.Several other online companies have unknowingly lost my business because of their none refund policy. Simmarket are mad not to just give the man his 4 dollars imo.Retailers and suppliers quite often seem to lose sight of where the customer fits in the cycle and they do so at their peril.

EVERYTHING is subject to exchange rates, I don't hear the Americans complaining when the Dollar is strong and you guys get it cheaper. Crap happens live with it. It is as somebody already pointed out a Global Economy, and that doesn't mean 50 States, it means hundreds of countries, you know like England (do you know where that is?) or France(it's next to England across a little river called the English Channel).

>Interesting, no boring argument about exchange rates,>exchange rates dont matter for a downloaded product there is>no reason for the product not to be exactly the same price>around the world end of argument.>For a supplier who has to pay for materials up front, that is>different.>>I have often window shopped at simmarket, but because of the>dubious none refund policy and tendency to rip off prices i>never purchase there, i have purchased several flight 1>products and asv6 because of the refund/support policy.>>Several other online companies have unknowingly lost my>business because of their none refund policy. Simmarket are>mad not to just give the man his 4 dollars imo.>>Retailers and suppliers quite often seem to lose sight of>where the customer fits in the cycle and they do so at their>peril.You simply HAVE to be American! And therefore prove my point. "Exchange rates dont matter for a downloaded product" ROFLMAO!You crack me up! :)Allcott

Sorry John,But this has nothing to do with exchange rates and global economy at all.The seller told me what I would have to pay and they told me using my local currency. They then linked me directly to their sponsored store (they have agreements with SimMarket).Jason

>exchange rates dont matter for a downloaded product there is>no reason for the product not to be exactly the same price>around the world end of argument.where on earth did you get this idea from? are you serious????

IT'S $5, GET OVER IT!

NO but i live in the digital age, if i buy something in dollars my credit card magically changes it to pounds and charges me that you lot a such a bunch of opinionated know alls.Maggie will never come back you know

Exactly, it's only $5.But who should get over it, the consumer or the company?The point is clarity. The Flight 1 site has an excellent system, check the link on my post above. Yet the other site, the one that is conected to automatically when you click "Buy Now!" does not. The onus is on the company to be clear and on the consumer to be careful. Perhaps both are at fault, but if the company just offered a polite apology and refunded the guy his $5, that customer would be singing the company's praises up and down the forums. (As I do now with JustFlight given their excellent customer relations.) Instead, we have the company, possibly a very good one, taking it on the chin in front of hundreds of prospective customers. This really could have been handled better.

exactly and i'm not sure how the 7 day distance selling cooling of applies to downloads, presumably not.As for exchange rates, theres no excuse at any particular instant in time a currency is worth x times another, you can bet your bottom dollar that if the exchange rate works in simmarkets favor and they get a nice little earner they ain't gonna tell you.What with the sirrus fs9 to fsx policy and fsx suffering owing to it having to be backward compatible yet every addon needing another payware update. This flight sim business is turning into a nice little gravy train for some people.

There is no doubt that the originating site should have stated that the link was going to another site that would charge a different price than shown, and why. That would have removed any confusion from the get-go.It's not just that it was only $4.00 USD, it's the perception that something isn't right. Maybe it isn't, maybe it is, who knows? An extra buck here, an extra buck there.

>There is no doubt that the originating site should have>stated that the link was going to another site that would>charge a different price than shown, and why. That would have>removed any confusion from the get-go.>>It's not just that it was only $4.00 USD, it's the perception>that something isn't right. Maybe it isn't, maybe it is, who>knows? An extra buck here, an extra buck there. Caveat Emptor remains the responsibility of the consumer and it always will do.The question remains, if our original disgruntled poster is so enamoured of Flight 1, why didn't he just buy the product from them?Its clear for all to see on the first page of the Simmarket site:"All sales based on Euro. Other currencies shown as reference only!"Their exclamation mark, not mine. That is as clear a warning to a prudent customer as anyone could wish for.Allcott

>>>exchange rates dont matter for a downloaded product there is>>no reason for the product not to be exactly the same price>>around the world end of argument.>>>where on earth did you get this idea from? are you>serious????Obviously the whole concept of digital age and global economy is totally beyond you!!The exchange rates are what they are at the time you purchase and especially in the case of a load of zeros and ones there is no reason for any 'lag' which happens to favour one party or another.If you buy something for which the raw materials have a long lead time (such as titanium) then somebody has to take the risk however (companies have large hedge funds to of set this) i don't think this applies to a poksy download from simmarket. I haven't checked but it sounds like i was ripped off as well, i purchased directly from hifisim and thought i would be paying the dollar price converted by my credit cards exchange rate.I bet if simmarket add up their little 4 dollars skimmed of the top for every transaction they get a nice little earner and probably avoid tax on it because currency's magically turn in there favour when the tax man arriveth, what a laugh and here are you lovely nice 'independent' people defending it all so strongly ..... i am beginning to question your independence this community seems very incestuous. regards