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trimethylpurine • yesterday at 10:07 PM • 1 reply • view on HN

Is there some issue with pricing being out in the open and the same for everyone. I understand discounts here and there to fill a flight, but why not offer them to everyone? Why do you care who is in the seat?

If I need to fill a seat last minute at a ridiculous low price, I'm glad an MCP client will fill it for me.

If the concern is that everyone will wait until last minute, that sounds like a problem that solves itself, last minute tickets will increase in price until the minimum price for air time is achieved.

Economics and all that...


Replies

ProblemExplorer • yesterday at 10:32 PM

> Is there some issue with pricing being out in the open and the same for everyone

Yes there is an issue.

An airplane can only fit a fixed number of people per leg. One way you can make money in a low margin business is make up in volume - this is the game gas stations, grocery and discount stores play - like Walmart.

You cannot play the volume game when you're physically constrained on volume, so you have to play another game.