Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!srcsip!tcnet!umn-cs!berlin!mpm
From: mpm@berlin.acss.umn.edu (Mark P. McCahill)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Apple Prices
Summary: prices depend on a lot of things
Message-ID: <320@berlin.acss.umn.edu>
Date: 23 Jun 89 19:55:43 GMT
References: <126900038@p.cs.uiuc.edu <43fc2743.18e92@apollo.COM <25698@agate.BERKELEY.EDU>
Organization: U of M MicroGroup, Minneapolis
Lines: 42

In article <25698@agate.BERKELEY.EDU>, steve@violet.berkeley.edu (Steve Goldfield) writes:
> 
> Here at Berkeley, the plus costs $917. Maybe the
> difference is shipping distance? (Unlikely, but
> I couldn't resist noting that as you get further from
> Cupertino, the price rises.)
> 

Prices are always going to vary a lot from one school to another 
because:

1.) Some schools pay local dealers a fee on each item sold
 (The theory being that local delears get support questions
  so they ought to be reimbursed. This kickback to the local
  dealer also keeps the delaers from complaining a lot about 
  campus resellers.)

2.) Some schools fund their microcomputer support organizations
   by adding a chagre to each system sold while other schools
   pay for microcomputer support staffs from central funding
   If the microcomputer support function gets money from the
   central administration, you will see lower prices than if the
   microcomputer support folks have to live off a percentage of
   each sale.

3.) Campus bookstores typically get chaged a percentage of each sale
  by the business office of the school to cover lighting, floor space,
  processing paperwork, etc. This percentage varies from school to
  school.

4.) Salaries for the people that unload the boxes from the trucks,
  write up your order, and take your money vary. How many people
  are involved in handling your order varies too.

In other words, the markups have to be different because each school
has different overhead (even if they don't want to make a profit,
you have to cover your expenses).

Mark McCahill

mpm@berlin.acss.umn.edu
mpm@UMNACVX