The prices that consumers for hard drives pay, are much more increased than what manufacturers calculate. Samsung would be the increased costs do not even pass. Also merchants disclaim the responsibility.
The prices of hard drives increased in the past few months to great heights, with popular models of close price doubled. The increase would be due to the flooding in Thailand, where the crucial components for hard disk drives are produced. According to Sander van Veen, product manager Storage at Samsung, it increased the producer price of Samsung hdd’s, so it’s 7 to 8 percent. Samsung could increase, however, not pass, because there are already agreements existed with distributors.
Nevertheless, increased the retail prices of Samsung-hdd’s, as well as those of other manufacturers, such as Seagate and Western Digital, huge. Merchants, however, say no exorbitant profits to make on the hdd. So point the owner of SiComputers in Maassluis, which is 1TB and 2TB drives from Samsung for more than 300 euro offer, with the pointing of the finger to the distributors. “Who have big inventories and count now to unreasonably high prices.” With the excessive high prices, he is trying to say that consumers ‘discourage’ still drives to buy, so inventories do not need to fill in for the lucrative month of December.
Also Am Oosterveen of the Salland region, and feels that the distributors and resellers are responsible for. “There is a number on this thing, to a lot to earn.” According to him, the end is not yet in sight. He foresees a price increase of hundreds of percent. “The latest reports are that the still to march could take up the delivery again a little bit normal.”
Oosterveen claims that the retailers have a lot to suffer under the higher prices, especially now that they systems have to create for the traditionally good month of december. These systems are expected to be also a lot more expensive, making the sale are much lower and can fall out. “We are experiencing here considerable damage.” He warns, however, that there is also not too gloomy about the message. “You can hear that the ssd-production, to be presented, which might be cheaper. That is positive news for consumers. For example, We can build systems with cheap ssds. Most of the people are still hard drives are that they themselves could build in the necessary storage capacity.”
Distributor TechData recognizes itself not in the picture. “We had happen last week to hear from our customers that they were happy that we reeële prices,” says spokesman Jhomy Stalman, “the main responsibility is the flood of course, which creates scarcity and scarcity creates demand, prices go up. The whole canal, every part of the chain contributes then to the increase. It would be for us not to have meaning, the prices disproportionate to increase, you should ultimately you keep customers happy.” Did give Stalman explicitly only for TechData to speak.
Manufacturers as well as distributors and stores to play with the increase of the margins in the coming periods in which the inventories are depleted. Samsung would only have a load of external hdd’s are going to deliver. Western Digital’s factories in Thailand, which is completely under water, remain for the time being also out of action, until they have the necessary production facilities somewhere else can host.