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Microsoft goes on a pricing treasure hunt
Products tend to be priced higher in Europe than in the US, but Microsoft is starting to push it.
The company on 30 January plans to launch its Windows Live Onecare security suite in 16 new countries, including the UK, France and Germany. The company's press release didn't mention local pricing, but did state that "the service will be available at similar pricing and licensing structures." That is similar to the US $49.95.
The company happily provided us with the actual data. Similar in Microsoft's book means a 30 per cent markup for European consumers (€49.95) and 50 per cent for the UK (£37.99), compared to the US rate.
Microsoft has a right to charge whatever it sees fit for this software. Its prices certainly don't differ from the competition's. But no sane person would claim that a 60 per cent markup qualifies as "similar pricing".
In case you wonder, European prices in part are higher because of value added taxes (VAT) and to offset the costs of localizing and translating the products. But the record deficit on the trade balance and government spending in the US has undermined the value of the dollar, further widening the price gap between the US and Europe.
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