Got it!
Thanks @DracoPrimal for the tip!

 

Please post the source. I haven't been able to find it. Thanks.

I'm absolutely surprised Hasbro would reveal their cost structure. All I've heard recently was pricing was increasing due to higher resin cost.

 

There is no source; he's guessing.

 

There's no source, merely logical reasoning based on the upcharge from precious collab figures and adjusting the leader/voyager prices to their current price rather than their pre-increase prices.

An example of the upcharge I'm speaking of for previous collabs would be Gigawatt being $29.99 despite deluxes at the time being $19.99. Regular retools don't cost more than their base molds (ER Megatron was the same price as Siege Megatron for example), so the retooling cannot be the reason for the upcharge. The most logical reason has to be the extra licensing associated with the collabs, which on average has been about a $10 upcharge for single license figures.

 

It's not a guess. Every collab has had around a $10 markup, likely to account for licensing. Because the license holder wants their cut.

This set features *two.* JP itself and the Ford license. Had it been sold separately you'd have a $60 Leader and a $40 Voyager.

 

Another thing with the price of this set, keep in mind that Mattel probably also wanted a cut of the profits for this. So that could easily be another factor.

 

Weren’t Ectotron and Maverick both licensed in alt mode and robot mode? I didn’t really follow the details on those, but that might help confirm your theory.

 

You're right, Ectotron does have the GM logo on his packaging and Maverick also had the Lockheed logo on his, so I stand corrected on that. Maverick was also $50 for a voyager though, so it seems like Ectotron may have been a bit of an abberation when it comes to pricing patterns. Though correct me if I'm wrong (I honestly can't remember for sure) but didn't subsequent runs of the first Ectotron see a price bump? I know the Afterlife version cost more because of the included comic but I seem to recall people being upset about Ectotron seeing a price increase from Gamestop compared to Pulse or something like that.

 

I also can’t remember how much Ectotron was. Maybe he was cheaper since he was still sort of a test for the modern collaborative properties?

 

Possibly, I know Pulse initially had him for $39.99 but want to say that Gamestop had him for $49.99 and I think the Afterlife version with the comic was to $59.99. I know Gigawatt didn't have the Delorean license.

 

The initial Pulse listing for Ectotron was in February of 2019 for $39.99 (verified using my account as I grabbed a PO on Day 1 of availability). His Pulse listing is currently "Sold Out" but remains at $39.99. So it was never upped there. The Target listing, which was the "Afterlife" variant, is "Sold Out." However, based on the TFW article at the time of it's release it was $49.99 (including the comic and extra ghost).

It seems like $10 is about the going markup for a collaborative project. But this is the first and only 2-pack of figures. So it may actually be $10 per figure. For all we know Hasbro wanted to do individual releases but the license holder wanted the two pack. Or the two pack was deemed the best approach to offset what would have been a fairly expensive new mold Ford with the relatively easy repaint/new head of the rex.

 

Afterlife Ectotron was $60, just checked my canceled order on Target.com. The only question really is what did Gamestop list the first Ectotron as.

So far we've had:
-Ectotron: voyager, $40 at Pulse and ? at Gamestop Ghostbusters and GM license
-Ectotron Afterlife: voyager $60 at Target w/comic($7 based on Shattered Glass figures) so the remaining $3 would be the extra ghost guy Ghostbusters and GM license
-Ultimate X-Spanse: leader $65 at Target X-men and Lockheed license
-Gigawatt: deluxe $30 BTTF license
-Maverick: voyager $50 Top Gun and Lockheed license
-Tyrannocon Rex and JP39: leader/voyager $104 Jurassic Park and Ford license

according to this post
What the?? Ghostbusters / TF Collab??
Ectotron was indeed $50 at Gamestop upon release, so really it's only the Pulse release of Ectotron that deviates from the usual pattern (by $10) and X-spanse (by $5). So I think it's safe to say that an average of $10 markup per license is pretty accurate

 

Gamestop has Ecto listed for $34.97.

 

Currently, yes, but we were discussing MSRP. Ectotron's current Gamestop listing is a reduced price from what it was originally

 

I may be waxing nostalgia a bit with this...but i was today years old, when I realized that a small part of me is sad that...

THIS...


Did not more directly reference in name THIS...

 

Yet another even better name. Hell, Orthia would have been a better name.

 

I got very excited when I realised how this coincidence played out

 

patiently waiting for a mad max collab

 

Would anyone be interested in going in on this set with me? I'm all about the she-Rex, but I don't want JP93.

If someone here wants JP93 but not the she-Rex, we could split costs somehow.