The UK Doesn't Understand Exchange Rates

Found on Techdirt on Thursday, 20 May 2004
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We've already had stories about how the recording industry is looking for any possible way to raise prices on digital downloads (showing just how little they understand the concept of an emerging market), and now we find out that the standard $1 price is really more for marketing reasons. Now that Napster has launched in the UK, they seem to think that it's a good idea to use the "1 standard unit of currency" as the main price - probably because it looks better in advertisements. So, in the US, a track is $1. In the UK it's £1. Now, while the recording industry couldn't be bothered, most users understand exchange rates, and realize that £1 = ~ $1.77 (with some fluctuations). In other words, for the sake of being able to use the "1 standard unit of currency" pricing, the recording industry gets to nearly double the price in the UK. This doesn't seem likely to encourage much adoption - but may encourage plenty of resentment. Of course, by this point, it appears the recording industry thrives on resentment.

So much for basic mathematics. I think they should hire some accountants who actually know how to convert currency. But perhaps that is just a bad example; I am pretty sure that people in Cambodia will have to pay one standard unit of currency too. That would be 1 Riel (about $0.000242). But the bad media always points out those examples which makes the music industry look like greedy bastards.