It is important to understand the concept of MAP or Minimum Advertised Price because it is usually the easiest way to spot a Non-Authorized Reseller, especially on the internet. If you buy from a Non-Authorized Reseller most manufacturers' warranties are VOID. You cannot compare prices accurately unless you are comparing between Authorized Resellers. Otherwise you are comparing one company that provides a full warranty and one that does not. 

Great Article on Minimum Advertised Pricing

 Here's except from an internet article called "Discounters, Monitors Face Battle on Minimum Pricing" by Joseph Pereira that does a great job explaining MAP. The article itself is about how EBay and other on-line auction sellers want MAP eliminated because it handcuffs their ability to sell new equipment from Non-Authorized resellers.

Click here for the link or read on for the important parts, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122835660256478297.html?mod=yhoofront

"Tiny firms like NetEnforcers Inc. -- with only 56 staffers jammed into a dim, spare cubicle farm here in Arizona -- wield economic power far beyond their size. These companies scour hundreds of thousands of Web sites daily, looking for retailers offering bargains below the "minimum advertised price," or MAP, set by manufacturers on an array of consumer goods.

When NetEnforcers finds goods like cameras, handbags or ovens for sale at too-low prices, as it claims to do 5,000 to 10,000 times a day, it alerts its clients, including Sony Corp., Black & Decker Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., JVC Kenwood Holdings Inc. and Samsung Inc.
For discounters, the consequences of not respecting MAP are usually speedy and decisive. If the seller is an authorized dealer of the product in question (which means it is bound to honor a MAP agreement), it gets a notice from the manufacturer or NetEnforcers and typically brings its price into line within hours, the company says.

In October, for instance, NetEnforcers found that discounter Buy.com Inc. and AceToolonline.com Inc. a seller of power tools, were offering goods at below the MAP. Both sites said they raised their prices to MAP levels.

If the seller isn't an authorized dealer -- for instance, a discounter that acquired the goods via a distributor -- NetEnforcers says other tactics are used to try to force a lowball price off the Internet. In these cases, they can allege that the discounter's use of the product's name or image constitutes trademark or copyright infringement, in an effort to force the seller to stop listing the discount.
Manufacturers have been racing to enforce minimum-pricing policies since last year, when the Supreme Court ruled them to be legal, and not a violation of antitrust law. EBay and a group of other retailers and antitrust advocates are meeting Thursday in Washington to craft a strategy to overturn that ruling.

Manufacturers say minimum-pricing requirements are good because they protect a brand's image from being tarnished by discounting, while helping retailers make enough profit to pay for customer service."

Manufacturers ultimately penalize the consumer by voiding manufacturer's warranties. We have had many frantic calls from "do-it-yourselfers" that saw the neighbors system we installed and decided they could buy the equipment for slightly less on the internet, unaware that "new in box, full factory warranty" listed on the website of the seller means nothing unless the manufacturer lists them as an authorized reseller or on-line reseller. We have nothing against "do-it-yourselfers", just make sure you buy from an authorized reseller or buy a separate product warranty (of course there goes the great price you got).

If you want more about Internet pricing tricks, click on this link to another table showing a real customer price comparison on a TV that started off a lot cheaper on the internet. There's definitely some shady practices out there that the consumer must be aware of so they don't get taken to the cleaners. INSERT LINK HERE

If you're reading this article through your web browser, then you're probably aware of how useful the internet can be in researching just about any topic. There is a wealth of both opinionated and unbiased informance out there, just waiting for you to stumble on it. How did the word "google" become a household name? Because they do such a great job at indexing subject matter and suggesting the best, most intuitive search results to you.

Personally, in the realm of home audio and video, I consider the internet to be the perfect place for finding objective details about various products. For example, if you're comparing two different brands or models of television against each other, you can most likely dig up consistent metrics that are available for both (like "brightness", "contrast ratio", or "refresh rate").

However the internet is NOT as good for harvesting personal opinions about the home audio and video products that you're considering. When you read an author's online opinion, you rarely know where the statements are REALLY coming from. Is it a college kid who just bought their first TV? Are they just someone who likes talking to anyone who will listen? Has the same guy written reviews on everything from blenders to wool socks to toothpaste? When I mention things like the 400 plasma televisions DIGITAINMENT has installed over the years, or the variety of products we've researched and tested, I'm trying to do what the other internet sites can't...Make you feel comfortable in reading a qualified opinion. Just remember to take the abundance of subjective statements out there with a grain of salt. Rather than being victimized by the propogation of urban myths through internet lore, just schedule a consultation with us. We'll help you distinguish fact from fiction in designing your home theater dream.

The internet for is great for pricing research on non-warrantied items like consumables, but in the era of expensive electronic equipment and long term customer service, it can leave you regretting the "deal" you got.

Recently, I came across a great example of how a smart person could be easily tricked by online retailers. You can imagine the type of consumer we normally work with at DIGITAINMENT. They are usually an upper middle income home owner, with kids and they enjoy family time together.  You certainly wouldn't expect a customer to be "duped" off the internet, but it happens all the itme.  Imagine my surprise when a wary and inquisitive potential customer had reviewed the quote we gave her, compared it to the best internet pricing she could find, and called me back to tell me DID NOT have the lowest price.

I couldn't believe it. I mean, she found the same commercial grade plasma TV for hundreds of dollars less than the price I'd quoted. I was embarrassed and...well...more than a little confused as to how this company could afford to sell it below my cost. That same night, I spent some time checking out the web site she referred me to. I'm not going to mention the URL here, but I'd be happy to share it with you over the phone or in person. As you might guess, I found several important details that this internet retailer played down, or even omitted.

Hopefully you'll find it useful that I've listed those details here. Whether or not you're shopping with DIGITAINMENT, you should use this information to browse the web with a more discerning eye, and make a more educated and confident home theater investment.

So in the end, I had the satisfaction of unveiling the whole story to my customer in an apples-to-apples comparison. They sure don't make it easy to see the extra charges and missing parts with internet offers. So that's why I encourage you to browse the web for information but remember...buyer beware (or at least be prepared)!