[comp.sys.next] Buying direct from NeXT

peterd@opus.cs.mcgill.ca (Peter Deutsch) (09/28/90)

In article <25785@megaron.cs.arizona.edu>, bakken@cs.arizona.edu (Dave Bakken) writes:
> In article <2789@unccvax.uncc.edu> cbenda@unccvax.uncc.edu (carl m benda) writes:
> 
> >Why purchase the pizza box from your University when you can get it
> >through a direct purchase from NeXT at the student discount.   I 
> >understand that the basic 105 Meg box is 2995 direct from NeXT.
>  
> >This way you can deal directly with NeXT professionals instead of 
> >college Bookstore types.
> 
> And maybe avoid paying sales tax!?


Errr, reality check, guys. I saw this one go around a
while ago (maybe last summer??) so I mentioned it to the
NeXT East Coast Sales director. I actually said something
like "What!?!? You made us negotiate and sign a contract,
spend money gearing up for hardware and software support
training, stock machines and parts, train our staff and
gear up to sell NeXTen in our Computer Store, and now you
plan to sell directly to our students, and have us waste
our investment!?!?!" She said "Of course not! Who'd do
support? We want a sales and support network on campus and
direct sales would kill that."

So, unless someone in this thread has a direct quote from
a serious NeXT representative, I'd forget about direct
sales. And if you do have such a quote, I'd _love_ to hear
about it... 


				- peterd

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 " Although botanically speaking a fruit, in 1893 the U.S. Supreme Court 
 unanimously ruled that tomatoes are a vegetable (and thus taxable under 
 the Tariff Act of 1883) because of the way they are usually served. "

                                          ref:  Smithsonian, August, 1990.
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scott@NIC.GAC.EDU (10/01/90)

In article <2789@unccvax.uncc.edu> cbenda@unccvax.uncc.edu (carl m benda) writes:

>Why purchase the pizza box from your University when you can get it
>through a direct purchase from NeXT at the student discount.   I 
>understand that the basic 105 Meg box is 2995 direct from NeXT.
>  
>This way you can deal directly with NeXT professionals instead of 
>college Bookstore types.

and later, peterd@opus.cs.mcgill.ca (Peter Deutsch) writes:
>like "What!?!? You made us negotiate and sign a contract,
>spend money gearing up for hardware and software support
>training, stock machines and parts, train our staff and
>gear up to sell NeXTen in our Computer Store, and now you
>plan to sell directly to our students, and have us waste
>our investment!?!?!"

Something's missing, here.  Does anyone _really_ think that NeXT would sell
direct for single unit sales for _$2995_?  If so, I've got a bridge I'd
like to sell . . .

I, too, have heard rumors, none from reliable sources, that NeXT will
be selling direct in the future at some time.  I feel that these are
_very_ vague.  I guess I can see the reasoning, because BusinessLand
is apparently not fulfilling their "promise" (see some of this summer's
BuzzNuG issues to hear about it).  NeXT probably will not have much
luck with PC resellers like BusinessLand, because they are used to wimp
machines, and feel threatened by real machines.  They won't have much
luck with higher-level resellers, because they want to sell the expensive
machines (which make them more money, one would assume).  So, NeXT would
probably want to go direct, at least in certain areas, IMHO.

But, so what if they do?  Students would get the base discount, so
they'd pay $3995 as opposed to $4995.  That's why the schools put
forward all this investment, so that they could get the $2995
(in some cases), or $3495, or whatever.  It's called volume discount.

scott hess
scott@gac.edu
Independent NeXT Developer	(Stuart)
NeXT Campus Consultant		(Not much, really)
GAC Undergrad			(Horrid.  Simply Horrid.  I mean the work!)