Jeff Bezos as a consumer how do you like the model?

[Barcey]

I was wondering if large corporations ever do a sanity check on their new business model by evaluating it from the customers viewpoint. It would appear not.

So you don't like the business model what's a poor consumer to do? You can get upset about it in an impotent rage but I think it's more healthy to have a little fun. How about applying the Sony/Kindle Online store model to other consumer goods and ask the question... Mr. Bezos how would you like it?

Lets have a little fun and create some distorted analogies...

[Barcey]

To get things started....

I think it would be great if Shell would sell cars and you could only buy fuel from them. They could change the fuel pump nozzles to be in the shape of an "S" and then the tank cover would have to be the same shape to purchase fuel. Texaco could also sell cars but make their fuel pump nozzles in the shape of a "T". This would save all those consumer decisions about where to buy gas from today. You'd just have to make the decision once and you'd be covered for the life of the car. The consumer isn't locked in though they have a choice. They could always buy a car from both Texaco and Shell and decide which to fill up.

Now fuel companies have a lot of money sitting in tanker trunks and storage tanks which is just asking to be stolen. If they equipped each car with a sensor they could add a unique mixture to the fuel when you fill it so that the fuel will only work in your specific car. For example they could add a specific quantity of sulphur to the fuel and if the sensor didn't detect the exact mixture it could shutdown the car. Sure the car might smell like rotten eggs but it's a compromise the fuel companies are willing to make.

Mr Bezos as a consumer how do you like your business model?

[ashalan]

Great idea Barcey

Not exactly an analogy, but just as silly imho:

Buy music online. Simply download our proprietary music player software and get connected to our online store. From there you can download any of our 1.2 million songs available in our own proprietary DRMed audio format. All you need to take the songs with you is our mp3 player, then simply transfer the songs to this player. Just make sure you backup the music downloaded, if you don't and you happen to lose your copies of the songs you won't be able to download them again.

[Penforhire]

Umm, isn't satellite radio or cable/Sat TV a similar model? Here's your box (free or at least partly subsidized) and it lets you buy from us. If you don't like it you can buy someone else's box but you can't use our box for anything but buying from us.