Saturday, September 28, 2013

Peter Klein on What Happened to Blackberry?

3 comments:

  1. The video contradicts the following claim:

    "Customers are a given. And they are always around since we live in a world of scarce resources. "

    at 1:05 Klein says: Consumers loved apps and Blackberry did not have enough apps available.

    Then he explains how they tried to make a comeback but without the consumers, developers were not interested in creating apps so their comeback never materialized.

    Then he explains the network effect which means the value of a good and/or service depends upon the number of people who are also using that good and service. So when consumption of a product increases, it's value increases.

    Interesting analysis but somehow he takes a hard right turn and it turns into a lecture about govt intervention. Who is calling for govt to step in and "regulate technology markets so that the best technology always wins?" It appears he is using the blackberry story to launch into a completely unrelated anti-govt rant. What he says after about the 3 minute mark is simply a collection of straw man arguments.

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    Replies
    1. You pointing out straw man arguments, is the ultimate case of the pot calling the kettle black.

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    2. Jerry, Klein is not attacking a straw man. For example, any call for anti-monopoly regulation implicitly or explicitly is because there's a desire to increase consumer surplus and make sure the consumer isn't taken advantage of. Taken advantage of what? High prices for a not so stellar product. And the "not so stellar" part is what Klein discusses.

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