Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew H.
I'm not sure what you think a free market economic system entails, but most people think that it involves a seller (i.e., the publisher) offering goods (i.e., e-books) to a consumer (i.e., me or you) for a price.
Selling to a retailer, or a distributor, at wholesale, who then marks it up and sells it to consumers is also something that happens in the free market, but it is not inherent in the system.
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So if we accept that the wholesale/retail distinction is not inherent in a free market system, the we would say your second paragraph is just two instances of the first paragraph.
1. The publisher sells to the retailer
2. The retailer sells to the consumer
So in this case, we have the seller from step 1 restricting how the seller in step 2 can price its goods.
Is this contrary to the spirit of a free market economy? I don't know really. The fact that seller number 1 puts a restriction on what seller 2 can do with that product seems not that different to the fact that in this case, seller 2 puts a range of restrictions on what the end consumer can do with the product.
At least seller 2 can actually sell the product. The consumer's got no chance.
Regards
Caleb