Why do Australian consumers continue to get the raw end of the stick?

[MissionMan]

I get that we pay more, I accept that, it's economies of scale, but what annoys me is when we pay more AND don't get the same as other regions? When X brand USA and X brand UK include free extras from the manufacturer themselves with gear, and we pay more than them but still don't get that? I don't want to turn this into a brand war of X vs Y, which is why I have kept it generic, but sometimes I feel like us Australian consumers are treated like we're sub standard consumers.

[ameerat42]

The answer is in the title, MM - Australian consumers.

[Brian500au]

I think it is a combination of many factors. We are a small population with great distances in between, so the cost of distribution is higher than compared to Europe, Asia or the US. Distributors have less competition and therefore can reap the benefits.

MM it not just photographic equipment. In the US pharmaceuticals, groceries, alcohol, housing are all cheaper (but then again so is the average wage).

I get really annoyed when a motor vehicle is released in Australia requiring six month service intervals, yet the exact same model is released in the US or Europe and requires twelve month service intervals - go figure.

[jim]

Futile to compare Australia with the massive market that is the US (though such comparisons generally disregard the state taxes that make things in the US more expensive than they seem)
For another comparison electronics (and a host of other things) are acutally more expensive in Thailand than Australia, though the Thais generally have much less money to play with.

[MissionMan]

Futile to compare Australia with the massive market that is the US (though such comparisons generally disregard the state taxes that make things in the US more expensive than they seem)
For another comparison electronics (and a host of other things) are acutally more expensive in Thailand than Australia, though the Thais generally have much less money to play with.

I'm not talking about paying more. I accept that. I just get irate when the USA, who are already paying far less, get other stuff included in their box that we don't get. Let say for argument sake that X camera in Australia cost $2000 and X camera in the same camera in the US costs $1500, I can accept that discrepancy. Economy of scale with a large country. What I find extremely annoying is when X camera costs $1500 in the US and they get a free battery grip (using a random example) worth $300 with their purchase. Its a big "what the #*%" moment for me. So our dollars aren't worth the same? Not only do we pay more but we get less? It's these kinds of behaviour that drive grey imports.

[jim]

Fair enough. Comes to much the same thing in the end though.

[Mark L]

Fair enough. Comes to much the same thing in the end though.

Not really.
If they can afford giving things like grips to the much larger market in the USA why would they make us pay for the same thing. We are a way smaller market so if they are interested in $s it should be the other way around?

[Bear Dale]

Nikon gives 5 year warranties on lenses in the USA.

Nikon gives 2 year warranties on lenses in Australia.

[Nick Cliff]

A fair point MM and many drugs in the USA if you have a disease were medications are a live or die matter can be exorbitant in price with corporate raiders buying many ethical smaller pharmaceutical companies and in one case I know of a patient who was spending $42 a month is now spending $290000 a year for the same medication to stay alive so that is the pharmaceutical business today in the USA.
I understand we pay more for many of our IT products from the USA and these IT companies again use the small market bit argument and you do wonder of course when a product is sold online how that argument can be sustained in an international online market. It is what they assess the market can pay to a degree and I had hoped with Amazon setting up onshore in Australia prices might be reduced however as far I can tell their product pricing does not appear to be that aggressive with cameras and equipment at this stage.

cheers Nick

[ricktas]

What I find extremely annoying is when X camera costs $1500 in the US and they get a free battery grip (using a random example) worth $300 with their purchase. Its a big "what the #*%" moment for me. So our dollars aren't worth the same? Not only do we pay more but we get less? It's these kinds of behaviour that drive grey imports.

and

Nikon gives 5 year warranties on lenses in the USA.

Nikon gives 2 year warranties on lenses in Australia.

BINGO.

Jim has hit the proverbial thumbtack with Thor's hammer.

The reason is Samsung AUSTRALIA.. Nikon AUSTRALIA.. Canon AUSTRALIA.. Mitsubishi AUSTRALIA.. etc

These 'Australian' companies are the ones that set the 'extras' we receive with our purchases. Not the head office, in Japan, Korea, USA etc. The same happens in the USA Nikon USA set benefits for the people in their country. From experience, some of these Australian companies are not even part of the global company. Someone just goes to the company, puts forward a proposal, it gets accepted and the setup 'xyz Australia', with a contract in place to be the supplier here. They then become the importer and distributor of that brand, but are not in anyway part of the global organisation, except for a contract giving them the rights to be the supplier in Australia. So they are not going to give away extras.. that cost them money.

What annoys me (and I am not talking camera or electronics here), is that when these contracts are signed, it is basically restricting the market.. and controlling the market. This xyz company can set the price, there is not competition at that level. And everything else is considered 'grey' and they will not support it with warranty etc. I see this in medical everyday. For example, we have a piece of equipment we use a lot. To buy it here in Australia, it costs around $400 each. I have about 30 of these in my workplace, as they get used in multiples at once. I can go on Ebay and buy the same product from the manufacturer direct from China in a box of 4 for $200.00. Yet the Therapeutic Good Administration (TGA) that authorises use of medical equipment in Aus, will not authorise the directly imported item. So if it causes damage, we would not be insured, if we have bought them off e-bay. If I can get them off e-bay for 4 for $200.00, you can bet the Australian supplier (only 1 cause they signed a deal to be the importer) can get them at about that price too (or cheaper). They weigh very little, you could fit about 8 of them in a 500g express post bag and not go over weight. Yet we have to pay $400 + GST + Postage to buy them.

It is not Samsung, Nikon, Sigma, Ford behind the costs and what extras we get.. it is greedy Australian companies.. that are often hard to find out who is actually behind them, as they hidden behind a structure of trusts etc.

So whilst the company name is on the product you get, it is often not the company itself that is setting the bonuses and feature level etc, it is some greedy importer, right here in Aus.

*rant over*.. thanks for reading..hehe

[swifty]

Just to add one data point. I'm living away from Oz in Singapore atm and comparing prices, I still buy a lot of my photographic equipment from Australia because it's often cheaper, particularly during tax time and with rebates.
I don't know if its the same scenario with greedy importers in Singapore but the 'extras' are normally just an extra battery or a (slowish) SD card. Most of the time the better accessories are offered as PWP (purchase with purchase) where they'll just knock a few bucks off that's all.
For general small IT gear, I know many locals also prefer to buy from BH or Amazon. No choice but to suck it up for the heavy items.

Also, I don't know if it's a deliberate attempt to confuse but model numbers appear to vary for very similar items between here and other markets. This makes it difficult to quickly directly compare prices unless you know the product well.
I know Panasonic does this for some of their camera models for example.