Square Enix statement

[MeiUshu]

Firstly the product is being distributed from the UK and there is no law, tariff or rules in place in the UK to justify the difference between the EU and UK version. So stop saying pointless things in an effort to justify what is not justifiable. The reality is there is no legitimate reason why they are charging UK customers a lot more than the EU counterparts. All SE did by the looks of it was choose a US price tag of 130 and then make it the same number for each currency type not taking exchange rates, economies or distribution into account. It is simply pure greed, incompetence or laziness on SE's part.

is it created in the UK ? or is imported ? because see if it is CREATED in the UK then I would agree with you but if it is imported, as I believe it to be, or better said, the retailers /sellers have received it as import goods then I am afraid you might want to revise your judgement. I went to a site and input some datas....using price reference USD 130.--- and asked it to be calculed in GBP, since using your*logic* just apply an exchange rate right ? answered the various questions and etc..added something like 40USD as shipping and insurance costs final price I got for the same good valued at USD 130.-- was GBP 146.--

Not sure anyone could explain to you anybetter how it goes. Exchange rate is not what defines the price, in between you have lots of things that happens...that makes the final price among those are taxes, VAT, import/export taxes and the like and also, how much the same good or similar good is valued on the country, because see, you cant make the price you want, there are rules even for that to avoid price dumping (so to speak)



Mei

[Reynhart]

I went to a site and input some datas....using price reference USD 130.--- and asked it to be calculed in GBP, since using your*logic* just apply an exchange rate right ? answered the various questions and etc..added something like 40USD as shipping and insurance costs final price I got for the same good valued at USD 130.-- was GBP 146.--

What is your site saying when you ask to calculate in € with the same questions, and adding the shipping cost for France ?

Or the same questions with the initial price for Standard Edition...which, IIRC is calculated correctly with the exchange rate ?

[Sebazy]

is it created in the UK ? or is imported ? because see if it is CREATED in the UK then I would agree with you but if it is imported

Please just stop already =/

Going on assumptions based on labelling from previous CE boxes and games, the DVDs, BluRay, Art Book and general packaging will be produced within the EU (Guessing Poland?), It's a fairly safe bet that the statue is going to be produced in China. Everything will be assembled within the EU (Going to stick with Poland again). All of this will then be shipped to a warehouse in the Midlands (UK) where it'll be processed and shipped off across the UK and mainland Europe.

Now I really can't stress this next part enough Mei so please pay attention here:

Shipping components to be later assembled into a complete package will fall under very different shipping and taxation costs compared to you or I importing retail goods along the same route.

At the point of sale, any EU/UK bound CE box will be sat in the Midlands depot and the country of origin is marked on the barcode as the EU, none of these boxes, nor any of there components are being shipped from the US or so your USD import comparison has zero relevance.

The whole Tax/Tariff stuff being banded around is largely irrelevant due to VAT being broadly equivalent across Europe and the UK (as detailed earlier). If you actually think that SE pay retail style VAT, shipping and insurance costs as per Mei's example when they import those dragon figurines from China then you are sorely mistaken. Of course SE will face container and shipping fees but it's nothing like the costs associated with a single item.

The bottom line here is that this is an item that is being shipped from the UK across Europe with a near 35% price hike tacked onto one country for no justifiable reason (backed up by SE's silence on this matter).

Thus the big question here is whether or not SE's practice of enforcing localised pricing coupled with the GBP gouge on the EU store falls foul of EU consumer law.