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To: packagingguy

IBM once had two models of small office laser printers. One had an output speed of 5 ppm, the other had a speed of 10 ppm. The only difference was a firmware unlock you received if you bought the 10ppm model.

IBM did not do well in the small office laser printer business.


29 posted on 08/19/2025 10:21:04 AM PDT by Dr. Sivana ("Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye." (John 2:5))
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To: Dr. Sivana

Ah IBM. They ordered a low cost computer designed to fill a price and performance hole in the middle of their lineup. It performed too well, so IBM derated it before selling the model. ( Documented in “Computer Structures: Principles and Examples” by Gordon Bell et al. )

IBM used to put ads into televised golf tournaments which were targeting corporate decision makers. In those ads they suggested IBM could put their customer companies in the position of hotels selling snacks and drinks to residents from the minibar - the ideal arrangement to permit ripoff pricing. Not even realizing more than 1000 regular golf viewers would associate IBM with outrageous screw-the-customer ripoffs per targeted executive. “When someone tells you who they are, believe them.” And regular golf viewers also chose between IBM PCs and other manufacturers.


47 posted on 08/19/2025 11:15:56 AM PDT by takebackaustin
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