Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!ctrsol!emory!mephisto!rutgers!att!mcdchg!ddsw1!karl From: karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Karl Denninger) Newsgroups: comp.sys.next Subject: Re: Who will buy the NeXT Summary: It's about time Message-ID: <1989Dec1.232137.11584@ddsw1.MCS.COM> Date: 1 Dec 89 23:21:37 GMT References: <964@abvax.UUCP> <246300069@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu> Reply-To: karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Karl Denninger) Organization: Macro Computer Solutions, Inc., Mundelein, IL Lines: 70 In article <246300069@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu> jpd00964@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu writes: > >/* Written 10:05 am Nov 29, 1989 by jaz@abvax.UUCP in uxa.cso.uiuc.edu:comp.sys.next */ >/* ---------- "Who will buy the NeXT" ---------- */ >>Since I am interested in doing software development on the NeXT platform, >>I've been following this thread with particular interest. I've got a question: >>Has anyone bought a system from Businessland or are most of you NeXT users >>college students, etc. The Businessland in Cleveland, OH, has not sold a >>single machine to my knowledge. > >The Businessland in Chicago has sold at least two machines to doctors. Besides >them, I don't think I have heard of anyone else buying machines. I am also >working on software, but as mine is medical in nature, I am happy that doctors >are buying them. > >>When comparing price, everyone keeps >>mentioning the educational price of $6500. Note that most people must pay >>$10,000 for the machine. I personally feel that Businessland may have a hard >>time selling a machine to a personal user who has the knowledge that his >>buddy can get a NeXT computer and printer for $5000.00 less than he can. > >The same is true for Macintosh, IBM, and Zenith though. Education discounts do >provide a very large incentive for young soon-to-be professionals to learn a >machine. Taking the machine with them to their future places of business. >On this line, though, I have heard rumors of upcomming legislation to prevent >educational discounts. It's about time the law was changed on this. One of the things that REALLY pisses off a dealer is when the local college sells 3,000 machines BELOW THE DEALER'S COST to students -- and the dealer gets stuck supporting those units. Some of those, inevitably, find their way into the grey market and outside of the university. The result of this? Ask the dealers in Ann Arbor, MI. More than a couple have gone out of business in the last couple of years due to the U of M's "Truckload sales". Happens every year. This is not good folks. Remember, this isn't like signing a dealer on -- the universities are literally opening up the backs of Semi Trailers and selling the machines off the loading docks! Support and service? That's for the local dealers to provide (free, of course, since the system does come with a warranty!) The law is rather explicit in this regard. If I sell you 500 systems for resale at $4,000 each, and someone else with identical service, support and sales expertise in the same geographic area comes to me and wants to buy 500 systems for resale, I better not charge him $5,000 each -- or I may end up in court. Sure, the burden of proof is on the (screwed) purchaser. But more and more, the dealers are obtaining that proof, and pressing their points home. I've no complaint with a manufacturer selling a university systems at a great discount for >internal use<. What gets to me and others is when manufacturers sell direct to the students of that college, through some under-the-table agreement with a college, systems for their own personal use -- below the cost at which any other dealer or distributor could obtain them. IBM, Zenith, Apple and others have been doing this for years. In fact, some people argue that these companies are selling to the students >below cost!ddsw1!karl) Public Access Data Line: [+1 708 566-8911], Voice: [+1 708 566-8910] Macro Computer Solutions, Inc. "Quality Solutions at a Fair Price"