[danlitt]

Dynamic pricing based on personal data is not even a market, let alone a perfectly competitive one. Temporal dynamic pricing can mean almost anything, so might be ok (early bird lunch deal) or pure evil (bottled water now costs $100 because there is lead in the tap water).

[estearum]

Your evil case is not evil

The point of pricing water to that level is that it would induce other people who have access to bottled water to bring it to that market, as is desirable

[danlitt]

> The point of pricing water to that level is...

No, the point is to selfishly profit-maximise. I'm not trying to be difficult in saying that. The thing you describe is not the intent, it's the hypothetical effect. It may or may not do that (I don't think it typically does, take toilet paper during COVID for example).

[estearum]

Depends on the POV you're adopting.

Yes, the point for the individual setting that price is to selfishly profit-maximize. The point for us accepting a system that does this is because it signals to other water-bottle-holders that there is a dire need nearby and pays them to meet that need.

I don't think the example of a meme-driven pseudo-shortage of a paper good during a once in a lifetime global pandemic (causing both supply and demand shocks and significant information problems) is a very good point.

[Throaway199999]

You assume that other people can simply bring bottled water to market & compete with discoverability and access to customers with established players?

Or is your point that all people in a market with leaded water should be paying $100 for pure water because it is inherently worth that much per the market.

[estearum]

No, I assume that if anyone can bring bottled water to market, they should have a strong incentive to do so whenever there is a strong need for more of it.

[Throaway199999]

But they (everybody) can't. Bringing bottled water to market requires a clean source, rights to acquire it, and a manufacture & distribution network. Plus retailers. As well, these things are often blocked to newcomers because of existing deals with big players.

[estearum]

> But they (everybody) can't. Bringing bottled water to market requires a clean source, rights to acquire it, and a manufacture & distribution network. Plus retailers.

I didn't say everybody. I said anybody who can.

What you describe is exactly why it's important to have an incentive for the people who do have those resources to employ them towards getting bottled water to this lead-poisoned region...

[Throaway199999]

Who in the lead-poisoned region can buy water for $100 a bottle lol