Convoy (1978) 4K UHD (Kino Studio Classics)

[sherlockjr]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

Can somebody explain to me why CONVOY 4K is retailing for $44.95 on Amazon? Sold off my Blu-ray and was about to pre-order this when I saw the price. Had a good chuckle and thought... What's the rush? I can wait.

You can pre-order it today direct from Kino for $29.89.

Don't know why Amazon prices some pre-orders at the full "list" price which nobody ever charges when it's available, then drops them significantly during the pre-order period. Oft times down evern more shortly after it ships.

Assume like with all Kinos it will be part of their quarterly sales in 3-12 months, depending on how well it moves on release. Although now that Kino is pricing new 4Ks at $44.95 it looks like sales price on those new 4Ks releases will be about $20 rather than $18.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by SpookyDollhouse

Kino raised their MSRP to $45.

Originally Posted by sherlockjr

You can pre-order it today direct from Kino for $29.89.

Don't know why Amazon prices some pre-orders at the full "list" price which nobody ever charges when it's available, then drops them significantly during the pre-order period. Oft times down evern more shortly after it ships.

Assume like with all Kinos it will be part of their quarterly sales in 3-12 months, depending on how well it moves on release. Although now that Kino is pricing new 4Ks at $44.95 it looks like sales price on those new 4Ks releases will be about $20 rather than $18.

The tariff announcement appears to have become an excuse for retailers to gouge customers.

[odlid]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

The tariff announcement appears to have become an excuse for retailers to gouge customers.

They licensed extras from Mike Siegel also. He produced considerable content that was used by Imprint and Studio Canal on their releases too. Guy has to make a living too.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by odlid

They licensed extras from Mike Siegel also. He produced considerable content that was used by Imprint and Studio Canal on their releases too. Guy has to make a living too.

Understood and agreed. Thanks for the explanation!

[Rayjg]

Will this include the longer cut? I don't see it listed.

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by Rayjg

Will this include the longer cut? I don't see it listed.

It will not.

[Rayjg]

Originally Posted by Dailyan

It will not.

It seems Kino has made this an easy decision for me

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by Dailyan

It will not.

I received my Imprint release today. I'm a bit disappointed that they used the older Kino Lorber master as a basis and just spliced in the print footage. Even though it's not ideal, with it having burnt-in Japanese subs, I would have rather that the print being shown "as-is" for a "grindhouse" appearance. Also, because the extended cut bits are really nothing that special (at least, for the price that Imprint was charging).

[sherlockjr]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

The tariff announcement appears to have become an excuse for retailers to gouge customers.

Kino isn't raising their list prices on new release single disk 1080p BlueRays, which remain at $29.95 or on older titles. Only on new release 4Ks--even older 4K's remain at their prior $39.95 list--which nobody ever paid either.

Is Kino raising prices because 4Ks are more expensive to produce through the entire process? Are they charging more because they're selling less and they need more per disk to pay for 4K creation costs? Are they charging more for 4K's because they're selling more and they want to make more money? If sales per new release 4K drop because of the higher list price they may decide to reset those prices. (That's the free market at work, not "price gouging".)

What I haven't seen them say is they're charging more due to tariffs, which currently aren't affecting disks coming from Mexico anyway.

Kino's a for profit company--if they need more revenue to stay in business, raising prices on new 4K releases may be one way to get that.. Because if they become a money losing business, they soon won't be a business at all.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by sherlockjr

Kino isn't raising their list prices on new release single disk 1080p BlueRays, which remain at $29.95 or on older titles. Only on new release 4Ks--even older 4K's remain at their prior $39.95 list--which nobody ever paid either.

Is Kino raising prices because 4Ks are more expensive to produce through the entire process? Are they charging more because they're selling less and they need more per disk to pay for 4K creation costs? Are they charging more for 4K's because they're selling more and they want to make more money? If sales per new release 4K drop because of the higher list price they may decide to reset those prices. (That's the free market at work, not "price gouging".)

What I haven't seen them say is they're charging more due to tariffs, which currently aren't affecting disks coming from Mexico anyway.

Kino's a for profit company--if they need more revenue to stay in business, raising prices on new 4K releases may be one way to get that.. Because if they become a money losing business, they soon won't be a business at all.

Agreed, but this price increase strategy could backfire in today's economic climate. If they keep raising prices on 4K releases, customers will inevitably prioritize their purchases, especially for what remains a niche product in a challenging economy.

While I understand that Kino needs revenue to stay profitable, the fact that competitors like Orbit and Diabolik sell those same items much cheaper hints at what their markup may be versus wholesale prices. This significant price gap raises questions about whether this is truly about covering costs or maximizing margins.

You're right that the free market will ultimately decide if these prices are sustainable. If sales per new release 4K drop because of the higher list price, they may indeed need to reset those prices. However, if they miscalculate consumer tolerance for these increases, they might accelerate the very business challenges they're trying to solve.

I appreciate that they're not blaming external factors like tariffs, but I wonder if they've considered the long-term impact on customer loyalty when comparable options exist at lower price points.

[sherlockjr]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

.

While I understand that Kino needs revenue to stay profitable, the fact that competitors like Orbit and Diabolik sell those same items much cheaper hints at what their markup may be versus wholesale prices. This significant price gap raises questions about whether this is truly about covering costs or maximizing margins.

Kino isn't selling it for $44.95 either. They're selling it for $29.89.

That list price is just an imaginary number, I wonder if anyone ever pays that much. The real mystery is why Amazon's algorithm is pricing it at that fake list of $44.95. That's what looks like price gouging.

However, recently I've seen on Amazon other disks from other labels first come out at the full, imaginary MSRP price for pre-orders and then come back down to reality long before the disk actually ships. Amazon's pre-order price guarantee means you'll pay the lowest price they ask between the time you order and the end of release day. For most disks--except some boutique "Limited Editions"--that usually ends up being significantly less than the MSRP.

That higher 4K price does allow Kino to ask for a couple bucks more for the newer disks during their quarterly sales, B&N 50% off sales, etc.

But if Kino were just jacking up prices in general, you'd expect them to do it on their more numerous BD releases. And those disk MSRP's remain the same.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by sherlockjr

Kino isn't selling it for $44.95 either. They're selling it for $29.89.

That list price is just an imaginary number, I wonder if anyone ever pays that much. The real mystery is why Amazon's algorithm is pricing it at that fake list of $44.95. That's what looks like price gouging.

However, recently I've seen on Amazon other disks from other labels first come out at the full, imaginary MSRP price for pre-orders and then come back down to reality long before the disk actually ships. Amazon's pre-order price guarantee means you'll pay the lowest price they ask between the time you order and the end of release day. For most disks--except some boutique "Limited Editions"--that usually ends up being significantly less than the MSRP.

That higher 4K price does allow Kino to ask for a couple bucks more for the newer disks during their quarterly sales, B&N 50% off sales, etc.

But if Kino were just jacking up prices in general, you'd expect them to do it on their more numerous BD releases. And those disk MSRP's remain the same.

I'm unsure why you're labeling it a fake or imaginary list price as if it wasn't officially created by Kino. Do you believe every MSRP is fake and imaginary too because most customers aren't buying them at full price? Rather strange and improper usage of those words n my opinion. Even if most aren't buying them at that price, the higher prices undoubtedly do still have an impact on the prices outside of Kino, sales or no sales.

[sherlockjr]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

I'm unsure why you're labeling it a fake or imaginary list price as if it wasn't officially created by Kino. Do you believe every MSRP is fake and imaginary too because most customers aren't buying them at full price? Rather strange and improper usage of those words n my opinion. Even if most aren't buying them at that price, the higher prices undoubtedly do still have an impact on the prices outside of Kino, sales or no sales.

I'm labeling the MSRP imaginary because nobody ever actually sells it at that price that I can see. Including the label itself.

Lionsgate Limited does the same thing: They advertise an MSRP of one price but then it's crossed out on their website and they actually sell the "limited" disks at a lower price. And they're the only place to buy those disks. From the first pre-order to sell out, so far as I can tell they never once charge the MSRP from themselves that's on the one and only website that sells them.

I didn't mind buying both APOCALYPSE NOW FINAL CUT and THE THIRD MAN at the price that was $10 less than that MSRP that no one ever paid. I'm not sure what that MSRP represents, but it's not a real consumer cost.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by sherlockjr

Kino isn't selling it for $44.95 either. They're selling it for $29.89.

That list price is just an imaginary number, I wonder if anyone ever pays that much. The real mystery is why Amazon's algorithm is pricing it at that fake list of $44.95. That's what looks like price gouging.

However, recently I've seen on Amazon other disks from other labels first come out at the full, imaginary MSRP price for pre-orders and then come back down to reality long before the disk actually ships. Amazon's pre-order price guarantee means you'll pay the lowest price they ask between the time you order and the end of release day. For most disks--except some boutique "Limited Editions"--that usually ends up being significantly less than the MSRP.

That higher 4K price does allow Kino to ask for a couple bucks more for the newer disks during their quarterly sales, B&N 50% off sales, etc.

But if Kino were just jacking up prices in general, you'd expect them to do it on their more numerous BD releases. And those disk MSRP's remain the same.

I think I understand what your saying. I didn't see the Kino markdown until just now.

Amazon is using it more as a place holder but it allows Kino to inch up the price a little more if they choose to, maybe to cover the extra cost to sell on Amazon or the free shipping? Am I following that correctly?

[Show spoiler]

So if I order from Amazon, which I prefer, then it should price match the Kino Website price roughly, give or take a few bucks. Sometimes I've seen bigger disparages in prices between Amazon and Kino for older BD titles, maybe recent returns to the warehouse, not sure. As you pointed out, Amazon has some strange algorithim they are using to set prices separate from other retailers.

But to MifuneFan's point, new releases do seem to be creeping up in price. Maybe not as drastically as the Amazon listing. Still I appreciate the clarification.

[AKORIS]

Originally Posted by moviemaker

The tariff announcement appears to have become an excuse for retailers to gouge customers.

bingo!