I remember it very well here in Australia as do a number of my clients.

You could import a NIB Stern such as a LOTRLE or a BIBLE from an overseas distributor, add shipping costs and all associated import fees plus an aftermarket Hertz conversion board to bypass the region lock and still have the total cost come in 1500-2000 under the local distributor MSRP for the same item.

Nothing like monopolistic distributor chain collusion to stamp out the good old days of an open market.

Local entry level price for a NIB Stern Aerosmith Pro is now $8350 which is more than what I paid for my BIBLE. The result is selling far fewer units and simply gouging the existing hardcore buyer pool harder to make up for the decline in sales revenue shortfall.

This pricing methodology is just not sustainable in the long term.