Wal-Mart Battling for $10 CDs

[Clint DeBoer]

<P><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size=2>An <A href="http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6558540/thekillers?pageid=rs.Home">article in Rolling Stone</A> yesterday outlined how Wal-Mart wants every CD they sell to their customers to cost $10 or less - something that would be industry-changing and would be sure to inject some serious life into record sales. According to the article, in the past decade, Wal-Mart has quietly emerged as the nation's biggest record store. Wal-Mart now sells an estimated one out of every five major-label albums. It has so much power, industry insiders say, that what it chooses to stock can basically determine what becomes a hit. "If you don't have a Wal-Mart account, you probably won't have a major pop artist," says one label executive.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size=2>The cool thing is that Wal-Mart is playing hardball on this. They want the record companies to lower their price for CD titles - and they are preapred to fill the gap with video game and DVDs if they don't comply. The great thing is that Wal-Mart is saying what we all have for years: It's CHEAP to make and distribute CDs, even taking into account recording, royalty&nbsp;and production costs. Could this be the start of a beautiful move against the RIAA to reduce pricing/profits/overhead? Let's hope so. Let's also hope that if the RIAA tries to squeeze the artisits to make up the difference that they will jump to independent labels in droves and send the industry reeling into free market economics. <FONT color=#ff0000 size=1>Thanks to WmAx for the article tip!</FONT></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size=2>[<A href="http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6558540/thekillers?pageid=rs.Home">Read the Article</A>]</FONT></P>

[outsider]

too bad it's Walmart.
does this mean more censored/edited albums?

[Az B]

too bad it's Walmart.
does this mean more censored/edited albums?

Yeah, there's good and bad in this. I like the way they're forcing major labels to lower prices, but at the expense of variety and freedom. As one who enjoys an eclectic music collection, I am concerned that this will reduce the overall quality of music that's available to the public.

It ain't all Snoop Dogg and Brittany Spears.

[goodman]

Woe to us if we have to look upon Walmart as a savior and paragon of virtue. Walmart censors what it stocks and is sneaky about it. If you look in the rap section at some record stores, you will find unexpurgated and censored versions of the same title clearly labeled as such. However, at Walmart, you will find only the censored version, but it is not labeled "censored", so you won't know you have the censored version until you bring it home and play it. It's awful, because there are just pauses where the deleted words were. Walmart has also been unethical in the way it responds to lawsuits of injured customers across the country. Judges usually restrain their negative comments about a litigant to the confines of the courtroom, but a judge went on national television to report Walmart's unethical behavior in a number of court cases. And Walmart has been discriminatory in the promotion of women to management positions and now faces a class action by hundreds of their present and former female employees. I'd rather spend my money elsewhere and probably get just as good a deal.

[outsider]

I will always shop elsewhere, even if I have to pay twice the price. I like service. I like when my questions are answered. Walmart has never been able to provide that sort of service. Some might say it's because the employees are dumb, but they can only be as dumb as the people who train them to do their job.

[Rob Babcock]

What's the solution to that problem? The kids that work at all the local record stores here are just as dense. You're probably better off just buying online.

I realize Wally World is the "great white whale" for many people, and upon its back they heap the sins of the corporate world, but they're no worse than any other company. I pretty much never buy anywhere else without checking their price first, since they're virtually always the lowest (with the exception of the bait & switch tactics and loss leaders a couple local grocery stores have).

When it comes to music, I rarely buy anything there mostly due to the fact that they rarely have anything I want (no DVD-A or SACDs, and I don't really buy pop music very often).

[Unregistered]

Many big chain stores such as Best Buy and Circuit City routinely sell CDs for around $10. Of course they are often limited to 'good' music from prior to the rap/hip-hop crap, which suits me just fine.

I wouldn't buy a cd of any of the current illiterate rap artists, clean or not, even if wal-mart offered them for $1.

[slmcdonald7]

I realize Wally World is the "great white whale" for many people, and upon its back they heap the sins of the corporate world, but they're no worse than any other company.

Rob, I have to disagree with you. Wal Mart is by far the largest retail chain in the US (World?), and they use this power to muscle their way to the lowest prices possible, with little to no regard to what the market really demands. Selling products for less than they are worth is good for Wal Mart as it allows them to maintain their position as the 'top banana' of retailers, but it is bad for the overall health of the economy.

Check out this article by Fast Company (http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html) , it illustrates this nicely. It's an interesting read.

Personally, I shop at Wal Mart only for basic necessities and only because I'm operating on a student's budget. As soon as I start making any kind of money, it's adios Wally World for me.

[WmAx]

Very interesting article. Thanks!

As for the *worth* of an item, that is an all too complicated subject for me to attempt an objective analysis upon. But speaking personally/subjectively and to the topic of this thread, I find that CDs are vastly overpriced even though I love music more then most things. I feel that $10 is still too expensive, too be honest. $8 would be a good target IMO. But I'm heavily biased -- I would love to see the 5 majors go bankrupt; *independants starting to supply the majority of products.... The majors aren't good for anyone -- not the artists nor the consumers. They do their best to stab both in the backs.

-Chris

*I realize that as with any company or group of companies, the independants would eventually consolidate and become the new *majors*. However, I believe that in the time it would take for this to occur, music distribution models would be radically changed since the old model(s) proved to inadequate. This would include online distribution methods--that at current are IMO a bad value(Itunes, etc.) and provide a poor product(DRM).



Rob, I have to disagree with you. Wal Mart is by far the largest retail chain in the US (World?), and they use this power to muscle their way to the lowest prices possible, with little to no regard to what the market really demands. Selling products for less than they are worth is good for Wal Mart as it allows them to maintain their position as the 'top banana' of retailers, but it is bad for the overall health of the economy.

Check out this article by Fast Company (http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html) , it illustrates this nicely. It's an interesting read.

Personally, I shop at Wal Mart only for basic necessities and only because I'm operating on a student's budget. As soon as I start making any kind of money, it's adios Wally World for me.

[Francious70]

I don't see why some of you guy are bashing Wal-Mart, it's a great place.


Open 24 hours
Low Prices
They have virturally everything you could want
Usually have quality stuff


Now I will agree that I don't buy music there as often as I go to a dedicated music story, but that's only because of more selection. I don't really have a problem with the editing of their CD's as I usually buy Country, Christian, and non-parental advisory Rock.

Other than that, Wal-Mart is a great store.

Paul

[slmcdonald7]

I don't see why some of you guy are bashing Wal-Mart, it's a great place.


Open 24 hours
Low Prices
They have virturally everything you could want
Usually have quality stuff


Now I will agree that I don't buy music there as often as I go to a dedicated music story, but that's only because of more selection. I don't really have a problem with the editing of their CD's as I usually buy Country, Christian, and non-parental advisory Rock.

Other than that, Wal-Mart is a great store.

Paul

Too funny. I'm laughing too hard to write a coherent response. You win.

Judging from your post, I think that we're too far apart ideologically to come together on an issue such as this, so I won't try to change your mind. All I ask is that you keep posting gems like that one. It made my day :D

[Clint DeBoer]

We do all of our grocery shopping at Walmart. All of the other stores cost way more and force you to use "discount" cards to make you feel like you're getting a sale. Most of the time, the cards only get some of the items back down to where they should be normally (meanwhile you get ripped off for everything else you buy.)

I see no inherent evil in this. Capitalism, like everythign else in the world has its limits. the downside is that supply and demand will always produce companies like Walmart who "win the game" so to speak and negate smaller comapnies from being able to compete (by way of volume purchasing.)

Its a complex game, but everyone knows the rules so its at least fair.

[farscaper]

Hey, let Walmart and the RIAA fight it out.
I can see the consumer benefiting from this. Standard audio CDs have always been over-priced (my opinion). Selling CDs at the same price as they did in 1990s, come on now!
There will be short term problems that will hurt new and lesser known artists but there will be a light in the tunnel. A new technology and new market system for music is needed. But no new system will come if there is no allowance to storm. The RIAA & Walmart have pushed around suppliers and artists alike.
Like most businesses, it should fix itself in the wash, if played fairly. Its good to see them pick on someone their own size.
Let it be a good and aggresive fight.

[cbraver]

Most of my CDs I buy are between $10-14 at Best Buy. The newer country I buy tends to be in the $14 range, sometimes more if it's a popular country artist. But, for the most part, it seems to average around $12-13 bucks a CD. I can live with that.

That jive music they call rap is always the most expensive. Kind of funny. Although I did see Eminem's new video and found it halarious... I'd never buy his CD. ;) Gotta laugh when he dresses up as Micheal Jackson, sits on a bed and has a bunch of little boys jumping up and down on the bed behind him while he does his tune.

-Chad

[toquemon]

Here in Mexico, WallMart is the leader too, by far. The problem i see is, like someone has posted before, the've became the first censoring entity in my country. Not even the government.
The records you can find here in WallMart are "politically correct", that's the problem.
The positive thing i can see in this situation is that other distributors will be forced to low they prices and ,because of the fact of lowering the prices, it will generate an unbalance in the market and maybe, just a tought, the music that i really like will low it's price too.

I don't know if i said it well in English, soory if i did it wrong.

[Westrock2000]

As for me I love Wal-Mart...I hated it when I was younger and had liquid cash and listened to what others said, but now that I'm an adult and have budgets I'm there all the time. Plus my mother and uncle in law both work for Wal-Mart and they like it there, its not the best job sure....but its nothing like what protesters and Unions make it out to be, and I'll believe someone who works there first.

As far as censoring the music...well I can see how this can go either way. Ya its an art, but it allows them to sell CD's to minors without having to worry about some special interest group sueing them, even though I've seen kids buy stuff at Best-Buy, Music Wherehouse, etc that were under age. Wal-Mart is like McDonalds, they don't have the luxory up being able to bend the rules like everyone else.



I wouldn't buy a cd of any of the current illiterate rap artists, clean or not, even if wal-mart offered them for $1.

As far as this is concerned...I have started buying music from Allofmp3 (http://www.allofmp3.com). Although I would never pay $0.99 for some data, they only charge $0.01 per megabyte. You get to choose the type of file. I do 320kbps LAME MP3, and an entire album usually runs around a $1.00-$1.75. Now it may not be acceptable quality by some, but its damn close...and you try finding a Breathe or Cutting Crew album for anywhere near that price! It gives me a chance to build a healthy music collection legally from stuff that is generally hard to find....which really is the goal I think. They also have lossless compression (like FLAC) and many can even be downloaded in WAV format, but then your looking at longer downloads, and more about $6-$7 an album, still not bad though. Especially if its a reference album, like maybe some Vangelis or Classical or something. But like recently I downloaded Temple Of The Dog and Soundgarden....which 320kbps is plenty good for that type of music.

BTW, Allofmp3 is a Russian website, so if you go there and its all Russian look in the top left corner for the English button....great site though



BTW2: I think Wal-Mart sells music online ala iTunes/Napster style, and the songs are only $0.88 each....Wal-Mart will undercut anyone :p

[Rob Babcock]

I think the market will almost infallibly set the correct price. To me, the idea that Wally World's prices are "too low" is absurd. If they make a profit, then their price is just right. If no one else can compete, then they have to learn to or die. That's just the way the world works.

Some of their alleged "systematic discrimination" is probably due to the fact they are so big and have so many stores in parts of the country that are more racist & sexist. I do know people who work there and at Sam's Club, and I was surprised that they pay workers more than I figured they do. And at least in the case of Sam's, they have pretty good benefits compared to other entry level jobs. Many of the mom & pop type stores that WM has crushed generated very few jobs at minimum wage, and offer no benefits whatsoever nor any job security.

Any time a company is successful, people come out of the woodwork to bash them. Microsoft is a good example- they may have been guilty of some anticompetitive behavior, but mostly it's just sour grapes from their competitors. I don't much care for some of their practices, but most of them are perfectly legal.

Mostly I think change just scares people. Some feel it would be nice to live in a Norman Rockwell painting for the rest of their lives, but times change. The trend does seem to be towards low costs & high volumes, along with more efficient production and distribution. Eventually someone will probably come along and beat Wal-Mart at their own game. For my part I'll always buy things where I can get the best price (providing the service level is the same). Certainly in my area, the service and speed of checkout at Wal-Mart blows away any of the grocery stores.

[jeffwxman]

Hi I'm new to this forum but I do shop a lot at Walmart.I like their prices.I buy most of my Dvd's and Video Games from them.I don't however buy my music from them except rarely as I listen to beautiful music also called easy listening and Walmart doesn't sell that type,I have to get it at amazon.com,Yesteryearmusic,cduniverse and other places online.If I do buy music at Walmart it is usually Christmas or Christian format.I don't have a problem with them editing their music cd's but they don't edit the movies they sale on dvd.I've bought PG 13 movies and had to mute it when it gets to the fowl language.Also regarding the price I would gladley welcome cd prices coming down to less than $10 even thou I buy most of mine online I expect if Walmart is able to do this other competitors,Target,Kmart and online retailers will follow suit.

[Az B]

fowl language

I thought Chicken Run was a great movie!

[slmcdonald7]

I think the market will almost infallibly set the correct price. To me, the idea that Wally World's prices are "too low" is absurd. If they make a profit, then their price is just right. If no one else can compete, then they have to learn to or die. That's just the way the world works.

Rob, we're talking about the market, not the Catholic Church, so perhaps your faith in its infallibility is a little misplaced. The market is capable of being thrown off track by the actions of large corporations. If you doubt me, just browse some basic antitrust law. I agree that the market should theoretically set the correct price, but in light of 'the way the world works,' it would be wrong to assume that the market operates in a vacuum. To evidence this, I refer you to the article I previously posted.
If you think that the proposition that Wal Mart can set their prices 'too low', is absurd, perhaps you should check out some basic economics. There is a proper balance between supply and demand that dictates price in economics (maybe we're talking Rob-o-nomics? :) )
"If they make a profit, then their price is just right". Rob, it seems that you're ignoring ethical standards of corporate conduct in favor of a Goldilocks and the Three Bears view of the economy. Interesting, but perhaps it should best be filed under the "Rob-o-nomics" category.
If my responses seem a little pedantic, forgive me, I'm just trying to be thorough.


Some of their alleged "systematic discrimination" is probably due to the fact they are so big and have so many stores in parts of the country that are more racist & sexist. I do know people who work there and at Sam's Club, and I was surprised that they pay workers more than I figured they do. And at least in the case of Sam's, they have pretty good benefits compared to other entry level jobs. Many of the mom & pop type stores that WM has crushed generated very few jobs at minimum wage, and offer no benefits whatsoever nor any job security.

Rob, you’re killing me. I frequent this forum for its wonderful discussions about all things technical and audio, not for its enlightened social commentary, but come on...
“Many of the mom & pop type stores that WM has crushed generated very few jobs at minimum wage, and offer no benefits whatsoever nor any job security”
I would absolutely love to see your evidence for this claim. It’s not like Wal Mart invented benefits packages for employees. Small businesses employ over half of the private sector workforce (http://stats.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2000/04/art3full.pdf) , and I doubt that most of these jobs are devoid of all benefits and only pay minimum wage.
I will agree that Wal Mart and Sam’s Club pay reasonably and have decent benefits packages, I also know several people who have been able to support themselves at a reasonably comfortable level on the wages and benefits that these corporations offer to their employees.
As for your explanation about the ‘systematic discrimination’ charges levied against Wal Mart, perhaps all fact finding should be left to the appropriate authorities. A quick perusal of the several recent discrimination cases brought against Wal Mart reveals plaintiffs coming from all areas of the U.S. (Pennsylvania, Connecticut, North Carolina, Texas, just to name a few...), not just parts of the “country that are more racist & sexist” (not that I have any idea where these areas would be, and surely you’re not condoning such actions just based upon where they happened?!?!). Rob’s free lesson in corporate law: if a Wal Mart in one of these mysterious back-country areas engages in sexist and racist practices, Wal Mart Corp. is responsible, end of story.


Any time a company is successful, people come out of the woodwork to bash them. Microsoft is a good example- they may have been guilty of some anticompetitive behavior, but mostly it's just sour grapes from their competitors. I don't much care for some of their practices, but most of them are perfectly legal.

Rob, how can you argue that those who have a problem with Wal Mart are just coming out of the ‘woodwork to bash them’ when you admit in your next sentence that they ‘may have been guilty of some anti-competitive behavior? Isn’t it possible that these people have a legitimate problem with the business practices of these large corporations?
You argue that ‘most’ of the actions of these corporations are perfectly legal... but ‘most’ of any criminal’s actions are perfectly legal. It’s the illegal actions that the ‘woodwork’ people are concerned about, actions that you admit sometimes happen. Perhaps labeling a principled argument against Wal Mart as bash-ings from ‘woodwork people’ isn’t your best approach to this debate. The problem that people have with Wal Mart is not their level of success, it is how they wield the power that comes from that success. With greater power comes heightened responsibility, so perhaps people trying to hold them to the utmost standard of conduct is a good thing. Just a thought.

Mostly I think change just scares people. Some feel it would be nice to live in a Norman Rockwell painting for the rest of their lives, but times change. The trend does seem to be towards low costs & high volumes, along with more efficient production and distribution. Eventually someone will probably come along and beat Wal-Mart at their own game. For my part I'll always buy things where I can get the best price (providing the service level is the same). Certainly in my area, the service and speed of checkout at Wal-Mart blows away any of the grocery stores.

Yes, I agree that change scares some people, but this better explains those who were opposed to the liberation of slaves and gay marriage rather than those who frown upon corporate avarice.
The trend towards low costs & high volumes and more efficient production and distribution is a good thing, so long as it does not lead to a ‘race to the bottom’.
People will always buy things where they can get the best price, and this is often a good thing, just be open to the notion that there are instances in which the lowest price often comes with a higher, hidden cost.

- Stephen

[outsider]

I don't see why some of you guy are bashing Wal-Mart, it's a great place.


Open 24 hours
Low Prices
They have virturally everything you could want
Usually have quality stuff



Which Walmart are you shopping at??

The last time I was in Walmart they sold mostly base-grade junk, had only a few of each type of item to pick from, and the items that actually were quality were roughly the same price as they were at other stores.



Now I will agree that I don't buy music there as often as I go to a dedicated music story, but that's only because of more selection. I don't really have a problem with the editing of their CD's as I usually buy Country, Christian, and non-parental advisory Rock.


What I find interesting is that the CDs are edited, but the movies are not.
As for your listening tastes, good for you, but many of us prefer other types of music that often have explicit language. Not that I love explicit language, but if the artist intended it to be there, it should be there.

[cbraver]

I want to see them put an edited Too $hort album in there. It would just have a few "da's" and "dat" and then just be a blank beat with no lyrics. ;)

Censoring music is just excessive. If it offends people, they shouldn't buy it. That is massicuring art. (if you consider rap or modern rock art, that is). But there are many gems of records that have explicit lyrics, and I think it's a shame to kill their work.

-Chad

[Unregistered]

I want to see them put an edited Too $hort album in there. It would just have a few "da's" and "dat" and then just be a blank beat with no lyrics. ;)


So practically every word is profane? Hard to call that 'art'. Must be a rap 'artist'.

[slmcdonald7]

So practically every word is profane? Hard to call that 'art'. Must be a rap 'artist'.

Translated: 'Why yes, I am a middle-age white guy.'

By the way, as I understand it, the proper nomenclature is 'street poet'. ;)

[cbraver]

So practically every word is profane? Hard to call that 'art'. Must be a rap 'artist'.

I'm not a rap fan. Don't own one rap album. However, I still consider it an art. It might not be an art you prefer, but don't just denounce it because it's about something you and I can't relate to.

-Chad

[Unregistered]

Musical tastes aside the fact remains that walmart only sells edited albums with little or no indication to the consumer. I've never seen a "warning all music edited" sign at walmart, and if they do have some kind of indication on the shelf sticker, i've never seen it.
(Also how often does product at walmart actually match up with the shelf sticker? not very. I used to work for an outside company that did inventories for walmart, and even though they cleaned and straightened their product before we got there, the shelves were more often than not chaos.)

Walmart is in possession of more than 10% of the cd sales market in the us, and any pubisher that doesn't make cd sales through them shoots themself in the foot because their competition will. This forces the editing of an artist's original intent, and the sale of this distortion to an unaware consumer. While technically i'm sure they're covered (they can most likely afford more lawyers than i can imagine) the end result of this situation is basically an act of FRAUD.

Some people have said here that they don't think it's a big deal because walmarts "moral guidelines" match their own, and so they feel they are not affected by this. They feel comfortable letting the walmart corporation make their decisions for them, which is a scary thing. What about the day that their views aren't congruant to that of management? I think that it's a legitimate concern when somebody is telling me what i should and shouldn't listen to, and that people should eye warily anybody who's telling them "don't worry you don't need to know, we know what's best for you"

The other argument i've heard is the "for the children" argument which is basically that parents want to make sure their children listen to music that is congruant to their moral/political/religious views. They say that by only letting their kids listen to cds from walmart, they are being responsible and protecting them. This argument is lazy and a great example of the poor parenting that causes so many problems today, even with editing forms and ideas still come through that you may not agree with. If you're that concerned, check the cd before they listen to it. Even if the lyics aren't printed on the insert they can easily be found on the internet

http://www.lyrics.com/
http://www.azlyrics.com/

^these two I just pulled off a quick google search for the string "lyrics" and there were dozens more. Artists often have web pages with lyrics as well as the numerous fan pages out there. To put your job off onto the hands of walmart is lazy and irrisponsible. Also censorship standards are not always even successful in stopping ideas. Language evolves around censored "bad words" and while a song may not say "**** that ****" there will be less direct things that you still may not approve of. (Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds anyone?)

As for the rest of Walmarts product somebody before summed it up, the quality stuff costs as much as anywhere else and the rest is crap. Sure it's cheaper today, but if its broken in a year & you've got to buy another one did you really save any money?

Back to music though, I think they should come up with a censored label similar to that parental advisory label, that should be a two way street. Also any label should be OUTSIDE the cd wrapper, not stuck on or printed over the cover art.

I was in great dismay when i learned that some of my cd collection was edited and I'm still searching for some way to tell and identify which ones are false. That's how i stumbled across this forum/thread and how i will leave carrying on my search. Remember though, think for yourself or else someone else will be glad to do it for you.

Peace

p.s.

keep tabs on censorship: http://massmic.com/

[gymphboi]

I don't see why some of you guy are bashing Wal-Mart, it's a great place.


Open 24 hours
Low Prices
They have virturally everything you could want
Usually have quality stuff


Now I will agree that I don't buy music there as often as I go to a dedicated music story, but that's only because of more selection. I don't really have a problem with the editing of their CD's as I usually buy Country, Christian, and non-parental advisory Rock.

Other than that, Wal-Mart is a great store.

Paul


I will tell you the major problem with Walmart. Chinese made goods. Rather than buy products made in this country (USA), they buy HUGE quantities from the Chinese. If I remember correctly, Walmart accounts for a large portion of China's GDP. They are a major part of the wholesale gutting of American manufacturing. And what they do buy from this country, they bully the suppliers to selling at very low prices.

-Tony

[MDS]

They buy from China because the price of the goods is very low due to very low wage rates. Americans have been living beyond their means for a very long time. We have record trade and budget deficits and it's only getting worse. If we keep going the way we are, printing money at will and borrowing from foreigners to the tune of a billion dollars a day, its not inconceivable that the US will become a third world country in our lifetime.

Then we will have far bigger problems than worrying about Walmart.

[stheartgrenade]

i bought a green day cd at walmart and they said the f word!!! it didnt say parental advisory! walmart doesnt sell parental advisory i thught!

[supervij]

If you're looking for (uncensored) CDs at good prices, why not just buy them at the used record shops? Here in Toronto, I pay ten bucks Canadian (about eight bucks U.S.) max for most CDs. Sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. And they let you check the CD to make sure there aren't any scratches or anything. And they give you a 7-day, 14-day, or 30-day (depending on the store) money-back guarantee if it doesn't play well.

I can't remember the last CD I bought at full price. Unless there's some spectacular sale at the big record stores, it makes no sense to do it these days. And some of these used places actually sell SACDs and DVD-As as well. So check out the used shops; you may have to do a bit more searching when you get there, but the prices more than make up for it.

cheers,
supervij

[racquetman]

We do all of our grocery shopping at Walmart. All of the other stores cost way more and force you to use "discount" cards to make you feel like you're getting a sale. Most of the time, the cards only get some of the items back down to where they should be normally (meanwhile you get ripped off for everything else you buy.)

I see no inherent evil in this. Capitalism, like everythign else in the world has its limits. the downside is that supply and demand will always produce companies like Walmart who "win the game" so to speak and negate smaller comapnies from being able to compete (by way of volume purchasing.)

Its a complex game, but everyone knows the rules so its at least fair.

Here's the evil of Walmart. Walmart attracts a lower class of people by undercutting everyone elses prices. They make up the difference by paying their employees poorly and offering fewer benefits. Disgruntled employees = poor service. White trash customers = poor manners/etiquette. I don't want to be forced to congregate with these people just to save a few bucks. I fear the day when Walmart has driven all of its competitors out of business. Of course I'm single and don't have a family to support, so I can ride my moral high horse. Actually, I think I'll change my ways. I'm gonna go to Walmart right now and get myself a $30 DVD player, RF modulator, and a 19" analog TV. Oh ya, and I'm only buying pan and scan movies from now on because those black bars suck!! :D

[Buckeyefan 1]

Walmart accounts for a large portion of China's GDP.

What??? Do you have any idea of what China's GDP is? Walmart is a fart in a windstorm to China.

They are a major part of the wholesale gutting of American manufacturing.

They aren't the reason US manufacturing has practically evaporated. Competition is. We breed competition. Labor unions fight competition, and unfortunately put the manufacturing base out of business. Competition is the reason we locate plants in Mexico. Sure, we can shut down our borders, but then we are no longer a free economy. The Chevy Cobalt would never be the fantastic vehicle it is without the Civic breathing down GM's throat.

And what they do buy from this country, they bully the suppliers to selling at very low prices.

That's the American way. Don't you do that to car salesmen? If not, shame on you! It's the suppliers choice to sell to Wally World. If they get in over their heads, it's thier own fault for not diversifying. If ma and pa shops that went out of biz b/c of Wally World were smart, they'd open up new shops that W.M. doesn't engage in, and milk the new thriving localities for the increase in traffic.

If you disagree with Wally World's business practices, don't shop there. You've got the internet to put them out of business - tax free!

[furrycute]

Walmart usually has very good prices on most things. But I usually buy most of my CDs and DVDs from Columbia House or BMG, which usually have better prices than what you can find at Walmart. But Walmart sometimes does have some bargains on DVDs. I once found one Walmart selling Band of Brothers set for $69, and that was the regular price.

As to Walmart's business practice. What can you do? That's the American way. Everywhere Walmart goes, small businesses get wiped out and communities suffer. Maybe one of these days someone will go after Walmart for antitrust issues. Actually I think that's a really good idea. Walmart with its current size is no less a threat to the American way of life than what Standard Oil, AT&T, Microsoft (though the rulings against the big M got nowhere), etc. once were. ;)

[Shadow_Ferret]

Rob, I have to disagree with you. Wal Mart is by far the largest retail chain in the US (World?), and they use this power to muscle their way to the lowest prices possible, with little to no regard to what the market really demands. Selling products for less than they are worth is good for Wal Mart as it allows them to maintain their position as the 'top banana' of retailers, but it is bad for the overall health of the economy.


Wow. You make that sound like it's a bad thing. How can a company being successful in any way be bad for the overall economy? That makes no sense. What's wrong with a company using it's muscle to lower prices? That can only benefit consumers. You. Me. Families. Sorry. But that's a good thing.

God Bless Walmart.

[victoriacoffee]

I'm glad things may be changing - two hardball giants going head to head. It has been a long time since someone has stood up to the industry. They have always tried to maintain large profit margins and leverage their distribution/marketing against new artists in order to create favorable deals. But hey, this is a capitalist economy and that's the way things work, for better or for worse.

My hope is that if Walmart succeeds, new retail outlets will emerge or old ones will expand, benifiting buyers everywhere.

[BobbyT]

Walmart attracts a lower class of people by undercutting everyone elses prices. They make up the difference by paying their employees poorly and offering fewer benefits. Disgruntled employees = poor service. White trash customers = poor manners/etiquette.

Financial status does not determine whether someone is low class, trashy, or thier manners and etiquette. Some very wealthy people with no etiquette also shop at Walmart to keep more of thier money in thier pocket.

[racquetman]

Financial status does not determine whether someone is low class, trashy, or thier manners and etiquette. Some very wealthy people with no etiquette also shop at Walmart to keep more of thier money in thier pocket.

Financial status is strongly correlated to all those things. It is not true 100% of the time. It may not even hold 80% of the time, but from direct observation I can tell you there is a correlation. I have lived in poor neighborhoods and in nicer neighborhoods in many different cities and I can tell you unequivocally that there is a strong correlation. To deny that with a straight face you would have to be deaf and blind and locked in your house 24/7.

In my experience, Walmart attracts a lower class of people. It doesn't matter whether they are well off or poor. I don't get door dings, car dents from shopping carts, spit at, almost run down, etc . . . where I shop at. All of these things have happened to me at Walmart. Two people I work with have had their cars broken into in broad daylight (on their lunch) at Walmart. I've never heard of that during the day at another store. The speed of checkout is ridiculous because the checkout people hate their jobs and aren't very bright to start with. Why do people sing the praises of this corporation (by the way, I highly recommend everyone watch the DVD "The Corporation" if you haven't already)? One reason only - their cheap!! When you ask someone why they shop at Walmart that is the only answer. You don't hear about how great the customer service is, or how clean the store is kept, or how well trained the staff is. All these things could accompany the lower prices, but they don't. And people are willing to put up with stupidity, and rudeness, and the occasional car break in to save 25 cents on a pack of twinkies or a CD. That's fine, just don't tell me Walmart is a great store. Walmart is a cheap store. Period.

[furrycute]

Please don't turn this thread into class bashing.

There are people of different temperments in all three classes. I guess if you really want to draw a correlation with manners, it should be that there is a direct correlation between the amount of education a person receives with the politeness of his manner.

But manner in this sense should be paraphrased. The more educated a person is, the more he understands the need to disguise his instincts in the form of polite manners in everyday circumstances. Whereas a less educated person tends to act out his base instincts, thus he is regarded as being rude.

However, this ability to disguise one's instincts (in the form of polite manners) should in no way correlate with the moral quality of a person, no matter which social/economic class that person is in.

In the better educated circles, in the long run, often you will come to understand the base qualities of Man more clearly than you will ever discover in lesser educated circles.

Mannerisms should never be equated to morality.

[racquetman]

Sorry if it sounded like I was class bashing. That wasn't my intention. I just don't like Walmart. I dislike Walmart as much as most of you (and me) dislike Bose. Understand??!!

Anyway, I'm done crying about it.

Bring on the cheaper CDs!!

[sts9fan]

"The cool thing is that Wal-Mart is playing hardball on this. They want the record companies to lower their price for CD titles - and they are preapred to fill the gap with video game and DVDs if they don't comply"


Yeah real cool :mad:

Walmart has used this tactic to drive under good american compaies and forced others to go over to china to give in to SprawlMarts demands.
Rubbermade anyone??

WalMart is bad for America and good for the Chinese. I have nothing agaist Chinese but I would like to keep jobs at home. Call me crazy. Even if Cd's cost 5 bucks at walmart I would not buy them there.

Also do you know who is going to take the hit?? Do you think the labels are going to cut their profits??? No the musican is going to get less.

BOOOOOOOOOOO