This kind of stuff started wayyyyyyyyyyy back in 2001 during Robots in Disguise. Because RiD had such a limited run in the US (one year), figure releases were limited to only 3 months. This sales tactic was so successful that very few (if any) figures were left in stores after a few weeks. The secondary market on eBay rose out of this, as scalpers would "help people find the figures they were looking for" (at an upcharge, of course).

Here's the kicker...big box stores, like Target and Wal*Mart only order figures once every few months. Their goal is to sell one action figure from a shipment every week (this includes Transformers.) Most stores receive one or two cases of 8 figures from Hasbro and will put out between 5 and 10 figures at a time. If they sell more than one figure in a day (say, if you bought Arcee and Warpath in a single day), they have fulfilled their quota for two weeks from your single purchase. They aren't going to order more product for another 8 weeks, provided all of the figures they have out on the pegs sells out. Spector creative has a great video on YouTube about this.

So, as collectors we're up against shorter release times and longer turnaround times in the big box stores. If you blink, you will miss a release. This has really driven the online preorder market to maddening levels where everything has to be preordered to ensure that you get your hands on one.

 

Have you seen ThinkGeek retail? Some GameStop stores have converted to ThinkGeek or become partial TG locations and I think it's a legit solution that the company is dragging its feet too much on pursuing aggressively.

It's T-shirts, Pops, import toys, statues, and a large wall of Marvel Legends/DC Multiverse. They prominently display lightsabers and prop replicas and have a geek test for employees.

 

Nah, we should end capitalism and all just make our own toys!

 

Let's end IP so multiple companies can compete to offer the best version of a character or mold at low prices, instead of buying overpriced scrap from a single company that might be full of QC issues

 

Have you seen 3P prices?

 

Have you read my comment ?

 

Yeah and 3p already ignores ip, yet the prices are way higher. Your comment doesn't make sense.

 

I want the complete weakening of IP, no one, not Hasbro, not 3rd Party, shall hold rights of production over any design or engineering

 

So nobody should own or benefit from something they create?  

 

Yeh no that’s stupid

 

they can benefit, just not through IP

I dunno there, may involve fraud, i don't defend fraud

 

But that's exactly what you're promoting. People and companies have the right to benefit from what they create. If you do away with the concept of IP, then there's no reason to create anything nonessential. Hasbro makes money from licensing the likenesses and characters in Transformers, not simply from selling the toys.

 

agree to disagree

 

So you don't think people should own and have control over what they create? That's what the IP laws do - they protect creators and give them control over their creations. It doesn't matter if it's a novel, a drug, a software algorithm or a piece of engineering - it's a creative work by the person, team or company that originates it, and the creator has a right to expect to be compensated if someone uses that work.

 

I think they can own physical property
If they come up with an idea and someone else copies it, i don't see it as unethical, but if that other person claims to have been the originator of this idea then it's fraud
I don't have much else to add, you're free to disagree with this vision, i just wanted to clarify what i do believe creators can own

 

So ideas/non-physical product shouldn't be protected? That screws over writers, moviemakers, musicians, software developers, and yes, engineers. The whole concept of IP is that an idea you create is as much yours as a physical thing you create. Hell, IP involved with TFs is probably more important than the individual toy designs.

But I guess you'd be fine with just anyone making their own TF shows and toys and whatever rather than Hasbro giving permission and setting guidelines. Because THAT'S what the concept of IP is all about.

 

Sort of
Kind of

 

You do realize that there’s a much greater chance of getting loads of crap if Hasbro weren’t able to try to keep some level of control than masterpieces. Knock off level toys and “Transmorpher” quality movies. And cartoons that make WFC seem like Citizen Kane. Sure, the current 3P makers would likely maintain their current quality but if it were a free for all, many fly by night companies would just try for a quick buck. We would lose in that scenario just as much as Hasbro.

I imagine you're thinking that without the concept of IP, we could get the awesome 3P stuff like FansHobby and Iron Factory at regular retail and it'd have all the legitimacy of Hasbro/Takara product. But that would also legitimize the cheap KO stuff. (Not to mention a lot of the cool 3P stuff wouldn't be possible if the 3P companies had to play by Walmart's rules.)

Hasbro maintains some level of quality because they’re invested in their IP. (Whether it’s high enough quality is a discussion of its own.) The media licensees are as well, because they pay for the rights. 3P varies in quality, but the good ones usually care about the material or at least have some pride in their product (they know they need to make their toys good to lure collectors.) But companies just looking to cash in? They’ll just turn out crap and move on.

Bad as things may seem at times now, it would be far worse without IP laws. It would basically be the end of Transformers as we know it, not to mention every other fictional franchise.

 

Agree to disagree