Magic wrote:
>As MDs are classed as non-perishabvle items, it is common for >warehousing
>groups not to stocj rotate the items. This means that >when the stock is
>renewed, the old stock stays at the back, and is >only distributed if the
>stock level drops low enough for sll the >newer stock (now in front of the
>old stock) to have run out. In the >case of media like floppy discs,
>cassettes and even CDR, it is
>not uncommon for stock to arrive being mixed in age from brand new >to
>months or even sometimes years old.
here we go....
Whilst at University I worked for the Stockport branch of Richer Sounds, the
UK's largest volume MD blank retailer. Stockport was their 2nd branch, and
is the largest outside London. Previously to that I worked for the local
Sony franchisee in York, and have kept in touch with them since I left, so I
would have somewhat more knowledge of MD's status and availability than you
seem to give me credit for.
Originally very few people carried MD, and the wholesalers who dealt with
other consumables would not stock them as they were low volume and high
cost, at around 10 retail. As the MD market picked up, the retailers of
MD blanks sourced *only* from the manufacturers, which led to price
stagnation at around 5 per disc.
During this time Sony offered it's franchisees a deal whereby they could
by 5,000 discs at a reduced cost price. The franchise I worked for did this
(after I had left), and was untilmatly to loose out when Richer Sounds
started selling their discs at cost price as a loss leader, and eventually
sourcing their discs from lower cost manufacturers.
When at Richer Sounds, I was frequently left with 'empty warehouse' syndrome
- everybody who's ever tried to buy one of the offers from them knows what
I'm talking about, and we did try to source from Hitachi-Maxell, Memtek,
MPO, Sony and others. ( Sony were the least keen, BTW :-)
The odd time we would get some grey import Sony's, but these were never a
stable supply. Only know do 'warehouses' have any supply of MD's, and their
prices are terrible. Richer Sound's loss-leader price is below their cost
price, so imagine what they charge as middlemen to other shops. Their is no
margin for them, so THEY DO NOT HOLD STOCK.
>I cannot say whether the stock is or is not manufactured by a >specific
>company - no longer having the discs I am unable to provide >any
>information that would enable somebody to do that.
You sent me a picture, from which I identified it as the same design from a
Korean plant that also manufactures for Mitsubishi. The Mitsubishi is
identical in all but colour.
MPO's discs have a very different style shell. Compare their BASF's and
FNAC discs with their own-brand Hi-space. They are identical in all
respects, including rivit points, style of printing on the shutter, shading
on the left side of the discs etc... the only difference is the colour and
name.
>As I was the owner of the discs and I don't have that information,
There is a little strip on the back of the disc, if it says 'Made in E.U'
it's an MPO made Memorex, if it says nothing ( blank), it's made in
Korea....(for some reason that plant does not print the origin on the disc.)
There! That wasn't TOO difficult for you, was it?
>I find it amazing a manufacturer could find a way to tell the
>batch details and age of any piece of media without even having seen >more
>than a scan on a web page not even originating in the same area.
The scan below it on that web-page is the MPO style disc. This is not the
same as your disc, correct?
Perhaps Arnaud, as sales manager for MPO, knew that none of their Memorex
discs had ever been supplied to the UK?
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