Windfall profits
by Volker Weber
Let's take the iPod 15 GB as an example. Sells in the US for $299, in Germany for 349 EUR. The US price excludes sales tax while our price tag includes 16% VAT so that would be 300 + tax for us. The current exchange rate is $1.27 for one EUR. Which is quite a margin.
Comments
In the UK, a 15GB iPod is ¢249 including VAT (at 17.5%). So, not as bad as pricing has been in the past.
Then again, at the moment, UK¢1 buys $1.82. That way, the new iPod is about ¢165 plus sales tax!
Apple is apparentlyreviewing the UK price for the iPod mini after protests there. Hopefully this will also happen for Europe...
Note that the international plug set for the American iPod costs something like $35 extra, which is included in Europe.
In addition, we have a two year warrantee in the EU.
You have to include international plug sets for your Europe market... between us all we have so many different plug standards, whereas a lot of Americans don't even leave their state let alone the country ;-)
Strictly speaking: You don't have to. First of all: The iPod charges through the data cable. Second, the power supply can be connected to a regular cable.
Of course, you want one. :-)
