Clear evidence of market failure

After converting some video to iPod format, and discovering how much time it took, I decided I might be willing to actually pay a little bit of money to get it done right, especially for DVDs, which look like they would take hours.

I couldn’t find what I wanted on iTunes (any and all Hayao Miyazaki), but I did see the Princess Bride ($9.99) and Wild Hogs ($14.99). I saw Wild Hogs on the airplane, and it was about as lame and horrible as a “comedy” could hope to be. The Princess Bride, on the other hand, is a fabulous movie that everyone should watch. “Inconceivable!”, “As you wish”, R. O. U. S., The Dread Pirate Roberts, iocaine powder, the man with six fingers, true love, “My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die”. There’s not even one memorable thing about Wild Hogs, yet it costs 50% more. Any market that prices Wild Hogs above Princess Bride, is busted.

What I really don’t understand, is why these movies cost as much as they do. DVDs (which have higher resolution, can be copied, ripped, played with VLC, etc) cost only a bit more.