How Customers Can Benefit From A Global Economy

Martin — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 11:06:33 +0000

Companies reserve the right to produce, ship and distribute their goods globally. Many produce in cheap labor countries like China, ship the goods around the globe to sell it high in countries like the United States or the European Union. It is natural to them because the process saves them lots of money. When customers try the same they usually reach artificial borders pretty soon. Some companies – like Sony – go even that far to forbid customers from one country or continent to purchase goods in another. Another example would be cheap mp3 and movie online stores in Russia and the Ukraine. Although perfectly legal in their country they are targets of the movie and music industry who do not want customers from other countries accessing the cheaper songs there.

There are other means to benefit from a global economy though, especially if you happen to live in a free trade zone like the European Union. Internet users have the power to compare product prices across several countries to save lots of money. What better way to prove this than to compare the prices of an online shop that is having stores in several countries. Take the German and British Amazon store as an example. Germans can buy in the British store and Brits can do the same in the German store without having to pay taxes or additional fees.

The decline of the British pound made it very attractive for citizens of countries that use the Euro as currency to purchase some of their goods in the UK. Here is a short list of goods that are both available in the UK and German Amazon store. Note: If you are French, Spanish or from any other country simply compare the prices with those local stores. All prices have been calculated in Euro using the latest currency exchange rates for better comparison.

Xbox 360 Elite Console (120 GB Hard Drive) – 211,80€ Amazon UK ; 299€ Amazon DE (-87,20€)
Sony PLAYSTATION 3 Console (80 GB Model) – 323,96€ Amazon UK (+1 extra game) ; 389€ Amazon DE (-65,04€)
Killzone 2 PS3 – 39,08€ Amazon UK ; 59,97€ Amazon DE (-20,89€)
Empire Total War PC Game – 26,76€ Amazon UK ; 44,95€ Amazon DE (-18,19€)
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II – 24,85€ Amazon UK ; 44,95 Amazon DE (-20,1€)

Not everything – but almost – is cheaper in the Amazon UK store. I have started buying all my gaming and DVD related purchases in the Amazon store. There are however a few things that people should consider. First of all, it might be necessary to buy a power converter for systems that require power. Not a huge problem as they tend to sell for a few bucks. Another aspect is the language. Many games and DVDs ship with several languages supported but this is not always the case. Not a huge problem if you speak and understand English but could be problematic for users who do not.

All items will be shipped by Amazon and there will be no additional taxes on the items. You usually have to pay for shipping and handling though which is a few Euros the most for items. This is one of the prime examples why it makes sense to look across the border to find the same goods for a cheaper price. Most customers from Euro currency countries will benefits from the prices in the Amazon UK store. There is unfortunately nothing comparable in the United States at the moment. If you purchase goods in Europe you will have to pay taxes and vice verse.

Do you have any additional tips on how to save money using the global economy to your advantage?

Tags: Advice, amazon, buying goods, cheap games, cheap ps3, cheap xbox, economy, global economy, internet shops, purchase

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How Customers Can Benefit From A Global Economy

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