¿Está mal que Apple haya rebajado el iPhone a los pocos días de su lanzamiento? Parece que no:
Apple was trafficking in very basic economics. The practice of offering different sets of buyers different prices is called price discrimination, and all the cool kids are doing it. And some, like Apple, have taken a lot of flack for it.
The classic example of price discrimination gone awry is the great Coke vending machine scandal of a few years back. Some pointy-head at HQ had the idea the price of a can of Coke from a vending machine should fluctuate with the temperature.
Thermometer-equipped vending machines would allow the company to charge more for an icy Coke on a hot day at the beach, and less when the weather was cool and pleasant.
The outrage of the Coke-drinking public knew no bounds, and neither did Pepsi's glee. Coca-Cola was forced to deny that it ever seriously considered the proposal.
Meanwhile, how did all these infuriated soda guzzlers with an overdeveloped sense of justice get to those hot beaches in the first place? They bought tickets from airline companies setting their pricing using exactly the same model.
So what's the difference? Why do people cheerfully accept price discrimination when it comes to airline tickets, and become Internet activists when faced with the same phenomenon in vending machines and iPhones?
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