why is russia so special

[StreetFighter]

Originally Posted by Fatonium

This.
Unless you live in Moscow, Saint Petersburg or some other major city, your average pay would be pretty low.

Agreed. With a salary 200-300 Euro nobody would buy 50 Euro games. Heck even $15-20 for Russian is like $200 for American.

[Original182]

It can be summed up as different deals for different markets.

Example, you get a free Battlefield 3 game if you pre-purchase Mass Effect 3 on Origin, but only in the US.

[Chr0nicle]

Originally Posted by Tizzysawr

The reason why games in russia are so cheap isn't just "Piracy". If that were so a good bunch of countries would get stuff almost free. It just happens to be that their economy isn't the same as other countries, and what's very cheap in the US or most of europe is considered rather expensive there, since Russia has a pretty high poverty index. That's the real reason, game companies knowing the standard price for most of the world is just too much for that country.

I'm from Russia and confirm it
Price for new game like $60 is too much for us
Our prices in shops for a new games (retail version) is ~$20

[LOST666]

I'm from Russia and I can help you buy the game at low prices!

Here are the prices in Russia

http://smotr.im/3D80

[Original182]

Originally Posted by LOST666

I'm from Russia and I can help you buy the game at low prices!

Here are the prices in Russia

http://smotr.im/3D80

I'm not sure if that's allowed. Best to just wait for sales.

[Ceron]

There's two reasons games are cheaper in Russian compared to the US/most of Europe: higher rate of piracy and lower per capita income. Steam lowers the prices for Russians to incentivize them to part with their money instead of resorting to piracy.

[Simian_]

Originally Posted by obzidial

my friends told me that most games are cheaper in russia also sometimes there are russia only cd keys why is this?

Russia has a horrific piracy problem, so games have to be cheap there otherwise nobody will buy them.

[dracoman]

Originally Posted by Mokk

Re: Oz.

Taxes and a government that hates the industry. Everything else is white noise.

I don't know what taxes you're talking about but GST(VAT)and income tax for store person wages are both lower than they are in the UK.

Government has nothing to do with pricing, it's the rest of the economics plus the monopoly(almost) that eb has.

If the last part of the sentence is about the lack of R18 rating, it's coming.

[Bobafett2k6]

Originally Posted by crispy animal

So if thats the case why do i as an Aussie get to pay $99 US for a new game? The Aussie dollar is only just over parity and average wage is about $80K so its not much.

$80k not much? Wowaweewa.

That's about £54k, an extremely healthy wage over here in the UK, and one that I would love to be getting but sadly it's a long way off. Despite this I'm still fairly well paid and can live and support my family on substantially less than that.

So going by the logic displayed in this thread, Russians are poorly paid, cheap games. Aussies are very well paid, expensive games (or expensive to me in the UK, relative in Australia).

[Mokk]

Originally Posted by dracoman

I don't know what taxes you're talking about but GST(VAT)and income tax for store person wages are both lower than they are in the UK.

Government has nothing to do with pricing, it's the rest of the economics plus the monopoly(almost) that eb has.

If the last part of the sentence is about the lack of R18 rating, it's coming.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censors...ia#Video_games

From the first paragraph - The Federal Parliament has the power under the Australian Constitution to make laws relating to communications and customs. Under the communications power the federal government can regulate the broadcast media (television and radio), online services (the internet), and under the customs power, the import/export of printed matter, audiovisual recordings and computer games.

"Taxes" may have been jumping the shark.

It's more directly linked to import/export than pointing to paychecks and market shares. It's not as though their government is friendly to the industry. There's a lengthly history of pushback from them towards the industry.

And i mean c'mon - Government has a lot to do with pricing. Always has. Everywhere. Case in point: How do you come by a monopoly in the first place, it's not like EB is capable of that all by itself in a free market, is it?

But that's another topic entirely.

[dracoman]

Originally Posted by Mokk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censors...ia#Video_games

From the first paragraph - The Federal Parliament has the power under the Australian Constitution to make laws relating to communications and customs. Under the communications power the federal government can regulate the broadcast media (television and radio), online services (the internet), and under the customs power, the import/export of printed matter, audiovisual recordings and computer games.

"Taxes" may have been jumping the shark.

It's more directly linked to import/export than pointing to paychecks and market shares. It's not as though their government is friendly to the industry. There's a lengthly history of pushback from them towards the industry.

And i mean c'mon - Government has a lot to do with pricing. Always has. Everywhere. Case in point: How do you come by a monopoly in the first place, it's not like EB is capable of that all by itself in a free market, is it?

But that's another topic entirely.

That link is about censorship, and an r18 rating for games is being introduced.

The part about import export still has nothing to do with pricing, since games are published and distributed within Australia, not imported.
That import/export section is about regulating contraband.

Basically, if you get caught importing an r18 game it will be seized and you may be fined. But the government is that strict with anything that's contraband...they're worse with food!

Government has a lot to do with salaries, which may affect pricing of goods.

In a free market it's very easy to become a monopoly, once you become the biggest you can just buy out your competition.
That's why laws were introduced to stop this, but there are still workarounds.

EB doesn't technically have a monopoly, it's just so big that they can dictate prices.
Much like the ipod, it's so dominant in the industry that it can dictate the prices.

[Parlock]

Also remember that minimum wage is lower in Russia, therefore their prices are cheaper. Why do you think the likes of New York are so expensive? People are making more money and are more comfortable to splurge out on things like games or extortionate coffee. Russia ain't like that, but Valve still wants their money.

[ppc]

some of my friends live in neighborhood of russian federation, min motnh wage ~ 220 euro ( most % people work for that price there) , so buying games like mw3 is VERY expensive. and its luck for them, that russian keys work there

[Mokk]

Originally Posted by dracoman

That link is about censorship, and an r18 rating for games is being introduced.

Scrolling up is hard. The link is, indeed, about censorship. But the top of the page explains quite clearly the powers the parliament holds over import and export of the materials in question.

The part about import export still has nothing to do with pricing, since games are published and distributed within Australia, not imported.

This is incorrect. Some games are, most are not. They're imports.

That import/export section is about regulating contraband.

Actually it's for all the commodities listed, and particularly the ones i highlighted as it relates to the topic.

Basically, if you get caught importing an r18 game it will be seized and you may be fined. But the government is that strict with anything that's contraband...they're worse with food!

Again - contraband has nothing to do with it. They control import and export of all the listed media and regulate it as they see fit. Be it contraband or otherwise.

Government has a lot to do with salaries, which may affect pricing of goods.

Not in a free market. Employers determine salaries, at best governments control the minimum allowed - that's it.

In a free market it's very easy to become a monopoly, once you become the biggest you can just buy out your competition.
That's why laws were introduced to stop this, but there are still workarounds.

In one breath you just proved my point - if you come by a monopoly it should be broken up, if it's allowed to be maintained it's done so by way of governmental action or inaction.

EB doesn't technically have a monopoly, it's just so big that they can dictate prices.
Much like the ipod, it's so dominant in the industry that it can dictate the prices.

I'm not saying that it's entirely government at all. Nor am i saying that EB does not influence the prices. What i am saying is that there is a government in place that is all but openly hostile to the gaming industry and strictly controls what makes it in and out of their country as well as to what price based on import costs as well as the market. Above all other arguments this control, in my mind and the minds of a few friends who live it, represents the crux of the issue for that country.

I know more than a few Aussie gamers who have told me that this, above almost everything else is what causes them the most grief when it comes to getting titles at all, let alone for a reasonable price. I'd love to see someone who actually has to live with it comment on the topic - it seems pretentious for us to get in a debate about it based on our own opinions from the outside looking in.

[dracoman]

If scrolling up is hard for you don't post links that you haven't read. Makes you look foolish.

That entire page is about censorship. Nothing at all to do with pricing. Regulating imports is still about censorship! That's what the article is about.

Even if games are imported, that only justifies a higher price, which can't be attributed to government.

You highlighted a sentence which is still referring to censorship, not pricing. So what?

They regulate import and export to stop illegal items from entering/leaving the country, it's very simple.

'Not in a free market. Employers determine salaries, at best governments control the minimum allowed - that's it.'

That's exactly what I meant, government determines the minimum wage for different ages, which is around what someone working at EB would get.

You were making the opposite point, unless you made a mistake in your writing, you claimed a company couldn't become a monopoly without government assistance. It's the exact opposite of that; government needs to intervene to prevent a company from becoming a monopoly.


Your last paragraphs are all entirely referring to censorship, import costs would make up very little to the difference in price there is between AUS and US.

'I'd love to see someone who actually has to live with it comment on the topic'

Here I am, I live in Aus. I see how utterly dominant EBgames is. That's why prices are so high, nothing else.

As for government being to controlling, that's was all because of one attourney general who despises games, he's gone now and r18 has been voted in.