So I just received an email from simply toys...

[The Mule]

Originally Posted by Peedi

I see what you're saying, but my comment wasn't about the world nor America's place in it.

XM will be just fine, for a good number of reasons.
US Marvel collectors, on the other hand, are the ones getting the stick.
I'm still curious about how legit retailers like SimplyToys are being forced to observe the same restriction XM has. This is new.

[Sv7nd]

Does this mean that guys like Mark and Kenny can no longer get bulk purchases direct from XM and then on sell to non licensed overseas countries?

As they are in essence an overseas non-official distributor that XM supports and helps facilitate. At least this is how I understand their relationship though comments and posts made on the forum...

[Peedi]

Originally Posted by The Mule

XM will be just fine, for a good number of reasons.
US Marvel collectors, on the other hand, are the ones getting the stick.
I'm still curious about how legit retailers like SimplyToys are being forced to observe the same restriction XM has. This is new.

I appreciate and respect the guys at XM, but that's not fully my concern. They'll sell out regardless of US and other countries not being able to order from ST...the product was never for us anyway, so it's not like our sales were considered in the budget sheet forecasts.

I guess to make more sense, my concern is how I'm going to get what I want. Just didn't want to sound selfish so I refrained from explaining further...but then I realize, we're all here based on what we want anyway.

Of course like others mentioned, there's always a way around things. I'm sure it won't be hard to get contacts in other countries who can receive our SimplyToys orders, but the question is having somebody reliable...and going further for future orders, having reliable contacts who can secure orders for us.

But the question there is how much money one is willing to spend to have the order shipped to a contact, and then shipped to another country.

And yeah, how SimplyToy's hand was forced like that, good question.

[loricstone]

Originally Posted by Bobfrog

Looks like a certain other industry player got their way then. Very sad that they find more time and effort to try scupper other producers (not just XM) efforts rather than putting it into their own product / QC thereof. If they did the latter then perhaps people wouldn't have looked to XM as much as they did in the first place.

I know people will say it's business and all that but it's a bit sad that it went this way. They must either be pooping themselves or have already felt it hard on their bottom line.

People will find a way to work around this so all SS will have succeeded in is one / all of the following:

a) divert some custom back to themselves (their aim)
b) pissed people off and turned them off SS partly or altogether
c) create a new industry for those based in Singapore to act as middle men.

Nice one.

Best of luck to all who got this message.

I wasn't going to say anything before but since you posted this I'm like why not since its relevant.

I have seen a few shops in LA and Singapore start to carry less of the other industry player's (we all know who that is) product. I don't know if anyone else has not noticed, but, Cornerstore Comics has decreased the amount of product they carry as well as a couple others.

Now I am hearing (loosely but I don't doubt it) that a few shops overseas that used to carry the other industry player's products are starting to not carry their stuff any more and / or have severely decreased the amount of product they ordered.

I always go back to the comment by Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park....."life finds a way." Funny how some try to implement all these failsafes and try to prevent other people/companies etc. from achieving or doing something....but in the end it always comes back and winds up biting them in the ass and they screw themselves.

Is there any wonder why I have severely cut back the amount of SS product I PO. My last PO was in fact Pinhead PF....and nothing SS or any company for that matter tries to prevent me from acquiring will make me run back to them. It will in fact have the reverse effect.

Like you said Bobf.....focus on one's own product and excellence before trying to focus on others.

[loricstone]

Originally Posted by Sv7nd

Does this mean that guys like Mark and Kenny can no longer get bulk purchases direct from XM and then on sell to non licensed overseas countries?

As they are in essence an overseas non-official distributor that XM supports and helps facilitate. At least this is how I understand their relationship though comments and posts made on the forum...

Those comments are false. Those guys do not work for or with XM. They are not retailers.

[Peedi]

Much respect to those guys, too. If they got a lot of email requests for XM before...

[Bullseye]

You can blame Marvel for this. Don't see how this is anything do to with SS. They have forked out for an international license and are entitled to protect their interest. It is up to XM to get bigger so they can afford similar license. This is no different from US TV stations protecting their broadcasting rights for say the Super Bowl.

[Sv7nd]

Originally Posted by loricstone

Those comments are false. Those guys do not work for or with XM. They are not retailers.

I understand they're not retailers, but I have seen comments by XM Studios in the past stating how they want to help overseas members etc. and having mentioned these names is all. These people are also getting more than the limit of 2 per customer that XM states they enforce to avoid scalping etc.

[loricstone]

Originally Posted by Bullseye

You can blame Marvel for this. Don't see how this is anything do to with SS. They have forked out for an international license and are entitled to protect their interest. It is up to XM to get bigger so they can afford similar license. This is no different from US TV stations protecting their broadcasting rights for say the Super Bowl.

Yeah I blame Marvel for a lot of stuff.

I wonder if this industry is going to go the way of the video game industry. I remember before way back in the early 8 bit days....Nintendo had a monopoly on companies that could only make games on their system and not the competition. Went to the courts and well....we see what came out of that.

Curious more than anything if this is a similar situation or not.

[The Mule]

Originally Posted by Peedi

I appreciate and respect the guys at XM, but that's not fully my concern. They'll sell out regardless of US and other countries not being able to order from ST...the product was never for us anyway, so it's not like our sales were considered in the budget sheet forecasts.

I guess to make more sense, my concern is how I'm going to get what I want. Just didn't want to sound selfish so I refrained from explaining further...but then I realize, we're all here based on what we want anyway.

Of course like others mentioned, there's always a way around things. I'm sure it won't be hard to get contacts in other countries who can receive our SimplyToys orders, but the question is having somebody reliable...and going further for future orders, having reliable contacts who can secure orders for us.

But the question there is how much money one is willing to spend to have the order shipped to a contact, and then shipped to another country.

And yeah, how SimplyToy's hand was forced like that, good question.

I see, but there is always a way out. Someone on Facebook is already arranging to sort things out, might want to take a look over there.