Soon we'll be hearing about the horrors of catalog buying just as we have about the horrors of retail shopping. The moral of the story is to learn, and to learn fast, so that consumers understand the benefits of each method of buying, and that each has its down-side. Just as cable television has taken consumers away from network television, these new buying channels have and will take consumers from traditional retailers. Both cable television channels and alternative distribution channels will proliferate until a point of marginal return is reached. Radio is still around.
Network television is still strong.
Because they both changed to meet changing consumer needs. Let's take a look at the consumer needs which the new distribution channels are working to provide. Most, however, do not know what the correct price should be. To make a long and complicated story shorter, consumers do not know what the best price is and are easily fooled. Plus they have yet to place a correct value on the products and services they are buying.