Question

A package delivery company provides both overnight and second-day delivery services. It charges almost twice as much to deliver an overnight package to any world location as it does to deliver the same package to the same location in two days. Often, second-day packages arrive at company warehouses in destination cities by the next day, but drivers intentionally do not deliver these packages until the following day. What is this business practice called? Briefly summarize alternative perspectives concerning whether this activity should or should not be viewed as a form of price discrimination.

Short answer

The cost of delivery is the same for next-day and two-day shipments, but the rates are charged differently.

Step-by-step solution

Introduction.

Price discrimination is a marketing method in which a vendor charges a different price for the same product or service depending on the client's willing to spend. The merchant charges each client the largest amount they will pay in pure price discrimination.

Given data.

Versioning is the process of changing the source of distribution in order to increase profit. When a company changes the nature of its product significantly and charges differently in order to increase profits, this is known as versioning.

Explanation.

Some packages are delivered the next day, while some are delivered in two days, but all packages are delivered the next day. The company alters the way packages are delivered and charges accordingly. This aids a company's revenue growth. Because the price is charged differently by modifying the type of package delivery, an antitrust authority can interpret versioning as a practice of price discrimination. The cost of delivery is the same for next-day and two-day deliveries, but the prices are charged differently.