Plenty of posts had a bullying nature to them - cry babies - fools - etc.
Quoted from paul_8788:
This is a veiled accusation in and of itself. You say Stern didn't "do this" on purpose. This indicates you feel that Stern did something wrong, either purposefully or accidentally.
This is not a veiled accusation at all. A combination of things occurred, which may or may not have been planned. I specifically stated multiple times that they may not have been planned.
Fact: a lot of customers are upset. Fact: Stern could do something different to make their customers happier next time around.
Quoted from paul_8788:
Also, again, an accusation (overt or not). You are implying that there was some conspiracy by everyone at Stern to charge more for their product than what it was "worth". No pinball machine is "worth" several thousand dollars if taken as a sum of its parts. All that matters is if it can sell for that much to a customer, and obviously it could and did regardless of your opinion of worth.
Don't put words in my mouth -> I never said anything to imply everyone at Stern was in on a conspiracy. Let me state it simply: Premium Upgrade: $1800, LE Upgrade $2900 - what's the difference for the $1100? Answer -> different color trim, mirrored translite, artwork and signatures.
I indicated that most people at Stern or elsewhere would think the LE upgrade (at $2900) has a very bad value compared to the Premium upgrade (at $1800).
Quoted from paul_8788:
What exactly did Metallica LE have over Metallica Premium that made it worth so much more? Mustang? AC/DC, Star Trek? You ask most who bought a Premium over an LE, and they would tell you that they thought the Premium was a better value. Also not sure how far back you are going to pull this $600.00 difference from. Look at Stern's website with the MSRPs for their last few titles. Nothing out of line with TWD with Mustang for example, so this increase occurred before TWD.
Since you asked, here are the upgrades with cost from Premium to LE (all include artwork, and plaque):
AC/DC: Real Backglass, Shaker Motor, Laser cut armor, better speaker: $600 more
Metalllica: Real Backglass: $600 more
STLE: Real Backglass, Shaker Motor, Animated Backlit Laser Cut Enterprise LE Side Armor, LED Illuminated 6" Stainless Steel Star Trek Shield Emblem on Backbox, Powdercoated Steel Lower Arch, Stainless Steel speaker panel, artwork: $1100 more, but you got a lot
Tron (upgrade from Pro): Lighted Ramps, Chrome Armor, real drop targets, and much more: $1200
TWD: Mirrored Translite (not a real backglass): $1100 more
The TWD LE upgrade @ $2900 is over 60% more than the Premium upgrade @$1800 for a mirrored translite as opposed to a real backglass. The value proposition variance should be pretty obvious.
Quoted from paul_8788:
I get tired of the term "artifical scarcity". Virtually anything manufactured could be called "artificially scarce" as long as the raw materials exist to continue building them. Semiconductor manufacturers are stopping manufacture of different chips/transistors. I don't see lots of people bring up "artificial scarcity" into the conversation.
You're wrong, it means the manufacturer decided to limit the number AND let the consumer know that the number is limited up front - Limited Edition is just this. You actually contradicted yourself in the next sentence (where you are correct). I also noted there is NOTHING WRONG WITH DOING THIS.
Quoted from paul_8788:
Any "limited edition" of anything made his artificially limited to try to create collector value. Anyone of adult age with several thousand dollars of disposable income should already be well aware of that. They also did not remove any "scarcity" of the LEs. They have not made anymore LEs.
The Premium and the LE are essentially the same product for a majority of buyers. The LE has almost no "extras" over the premium, yet costs 61% more than the premium upgrade ($2900 vs $1800). By ONLY selling the LE version, and (timing is important), immediately unveiling the Premium after LEs are sold -> the removed the scarcity of the Pre/LE upgrade from a pro.
Quoted from paul_8788:
Big of you to admit that Stern is not necessarily up in its smoke filled room twirling the ends of its evil moustache.
I've really tried hard NOT to bash Stern here. I saw a lot of posts from people that are upset (and have a legitimate reason to be) that are being made fun of by a majority of posts. The combination of how things were done this time around IS different from any previous game. It is only because of the COMBINATION of things that makes the customers unhappy, which Stern can easily fix, and I've suggested EASY fixes that will actually make Stern MORE Money in the long run, because happy customers buy more. FYI - I'm heavily involved in pricing related consulting for multiple fortune 500 companies, so I have experience in what I'm discussing.
Bottom Line: There is a Sales/Marketing issue here that should be corrected for Stern to keep happy customers. If Stern can understand why and make a correction, they will be better off.
Stern can do either of these and have happier customers...
- Provide decent value to the LE upgrade (versus the Premium Upgrade)
- Don't start with ONLY the LE for sale (artificial scarcity of a Pre/LE upgrade)
Stern did BOTH of the above with most/all previous releases, up until TWD.