i think the issue has to do with tradition and traditionally long wingers with big cars and money to burn have brought them and not really thought about the price, but yes everyone is being screwed over when you think all the system is , it a signal strength meter. The Aerial does all the work as that pin points the direction. Most two bit scanners have strength meters in them. I might look into this further. Like i said i have not got a problem with the transmitter its the receiver thats the rip off price.
The GPS thing looks interesting and looks small enough too.
Last Edit: Nov 28, 2009 19:29:18 GMT -5 by Deleted
Price is a major issue - now that the new falconry rules require TWO transmitters on all hybrid birds. I'm convinced the makers/suppliers had a BIG hand in getting that put in the regs. More cha-ching for them!
GPS falconry transmitters are in the works right now, but, can you afford them. The telemetry we have now seems to work pretty good and once you pay for it, the only up keep is the batteries. GPS will have a fee for the sattalite service every year and as we all know, that doesn't guarentee that you will get your bird back alive.
GPS falconry transmitters are in the works right now, but, can you afford them. The telemetry we have now seems to work pretty good and once you pay for it, the only up keep is the batteries. GPS will have a fee for the sattalite service every year and as we all know, that doesn't guarentee that you will get your bird back alive.
Exactly, Raptrlvr. The org I co-op with pays dearly for the GPS solar back packs and the satellite service to track the released Barn owls. Cool stuff, but IMHO they are still way too bulky to put on a falconry bird. Until it's fiscally feasible (if ever), and built smaller, I'll stick with my old stuff.
i think the issue has to do with tradition and traditionally long wingers with big cars and money to burn have brought them and not really thought about the price, but yes everyone is being screwed over when you think all the system is , it a signal strength meter. The Aerial does all the work as that pin points the direction. Most two bit scanners have strength meters in them. I might look into this further. Like i said i have not got a problem with the transmitter its the receiver thats the rip off price.
The GPS thing looks interesting and looks small enough too.
Unfounded and untrue blanket derisive statement, blaming longwingers for the problems of the world.
cost is determined by 2 things Supply and demand. so lets observe supply, there is plenty of it. they will never have a shortage of telemetry.
Now Demand. there isnt enough of it, at least for falconry. dog owners that hunt with their dog vastly out weigh the number of falconers, so they have a hi demand for GPS for dogs. Falconers..... there arent NEAR as many people in the world that fly BOP for the price to be lowered. Look at the DVD player, it went from thousands of dollars to free with purchase of a coke really fast cause there was such a hi demand and many off brand companies were making them cheaper and flooding the market with them.
there arent millions of people wanting telemetry, and there isnt a Farshall or Herlin knock off trying to reproduce tiny telemetry cause there is NO universal demand for it.
So it turns into the most common thing in economics, you want it that small?
SURE but its gonna cost YA!
look at cars, they dont need to be that small, they only need to be small enough to fit in you glove box or under your seat, which is still pretty big, and they just need to make sure it is under 200 pounds. anything smaller is too small for them to care about.
... they will never have a shortage of telemetry...
The org I co-op with on the Barn owl study waited months for their GPS solar powered units because the supplier only makes them after they're ordered and paid for (kinda like ordering a falconry hood). And there aren't that many GPS suppliers (competition) for this type of use. So, if your supplier quits making them for lack of demand, you're hard pressed to find another supplier.
Falconers..... there arent NEAR as many people in the world that fly BOP for the price to be lowered.
The old regs never required telemetry at all. Prices were kept reasonably affordable for most falconers because telem was optional equipment. The new regs, however, require TWO transmitters on hybrids. A lot of falconers fly hybrids. So basically, the makers/suppliers orchestrated their own hike in demand. Not being optional equipment anymore, suppliers can now band together and decide the price they'll all charge. Falconers will have to pay it, or not fly hybrids, or fly them illegally.
there arent millions of people wanting telemetry, and there isnt a Farshall or Herlin knock off trying to reproduce tiny telemetry cause there is NO universal demand for it.
There's a bigger demand now - in the US anyway, thanks to the new regs. But you're right... the market is still small - hence the excuse for the big price ticket.
So it turns into the most common thing in economics, you want it that small? SURE but its gonna cost YA!
True! Another example -- baby clothes. I'm baffled how they can justify charging the same price for toddler jeans as they do XX large adult jeans - when there's far less material and labor involved.
it will be intresting to see if the price of hybrids drop. think about it, you are almost buying 2 birds now when you buy a hybrid. a cheap hybrid $900. then 2 telem at a minimum of $150 each, $1200 dollars. a real cost of hybrid, $1200-$2000 +$300, yea i dont think so. use the birds god put on earth for me, spent $1000 for this "FREE" RT i trapped already thank you very much. if a breeder was smart, they could start a package deal a bird and 2 transmitters combo.
turn breeders into a Mcdonalds, "would you like to RT+ size thoes transmitters sir?"
you think this could drive a wedge between breeders and Telem makers?
Last Edit: Nov 30, 2009 11:19:53 GMT -5 by killjoy
Post by profalconer on Nov 30, 2009 11:40:30 GMT -5
Most bird prices have dropped, a hybrid that cost $2000 last year goes for $500-$700 this year. This is just to make up for the food bill! A pure female peregrine is more expensive, I know I would pay the $1000 for a brookei when I'm ready for it. I only know one breeder in the US so I'm willing to pay the price. Even those birds use to go for more. So if your gonna get a discounted bird with a hybrid use that extra money to buy an exta transmitter.
Fred (jfseaman) and killjoy are both 100% on target with there comments.
Marshall and L.L. Electronics (manufacturer of the Merlin) are both viable companies that appear to understand the market. If they were to price their product to high either the demand would dry up or competitors would step in. If they priced it to low they would most likely be go out of business.
Even when you have a great product, if the target market is small you can find yourself in trouble. Case in point I received an e-mail message this morning from American Falconry magazine. They are in danger of shutting down if they can't get more subscribers and raise some money. I’m a subscriber and I can remember when I first subscribed thinking that $36.00 for 4 issues seemed steep for a magazine. Non-the-less I subscribed. I don’t have insight into their business but obviously their costs are greater then their revenue stream.
Argue for your limitations and sure enough they're yours. From Richard Bach's "ILLUSIONS" - Diary of a Reluctant Messiah (1977)