[dcow]

I have always wondered why pricing can’t fix the issue. On launch day, or for your first batch or whatever, start the pricing higher than you expect most anybody to pay. Target a constant rate of purchase by gradually lowering and raising the price to maintain some target sales per min/hour. Bots and scalpers get stuck holding the bag if they buy on launch day because the price will likely never be higher than what they had to pay to get the product. The company makes marginally more money on launches. People who really really want the product get it at a fair price (they were willing to pay).

[Ajedi32]

> People who really really want the product get it at a fair price (they were willing to pay).

If people were content to get the product at a fair price, scalpers wouldn't be a problem in the first place. The whole reason scalpers are considered a problem is that people want the product at a cheaper than fair price, and scalpers prevent that by buying up any inventory that is being sold for below the market rate.

Basically, if companies employed the strategy you suggest, then they'd effectively become the scalpers in the eyes of people who consider scalping a problem, with all the PR issues associated with that.

That's not to say it's necessarily a bad idea though. Once you accept the fact that scalpers exist, it makes sense for companies to capture those profits themselves rather than let scalpers just have them for free.

[dcow]

Yes I understand and I do see your point. I wonder if the problem can be solved semantically. Instead of thinking of the company as the scalpers you want people thinking of the launch event as an auction. I don't think people would be so fickle if you framed the practice as “launch auctions”. Then it would be clear to everyone that there is no msrp until the supply and demand stabilize. And people would be at liberty to pay whatever they thought a fair price for the item all things considered. If someone else bids higher, well, tough luck.