The China Price: The True Cost of Chinese Competitive Advantage

by Alexandra Harney

A landmark eyewitness exposé of how China's factory economy competes for Western business by selling out its workers, its environment, and its future

In The China Price, acclaimed Financial Times correspondent Alex Harney uncovers the truth about how China is able to offer such amazingly low prices to the rest of the world. What she has discovered is a brutal, Hobbesian world in which intense pricing pressure from Western companies combines with ubiquitous corruption and a lack of transparency to exact an unseen and unconscionable toll in human misery and environmental damage.

In a way, Harney shows, what goes on in China is inevitable. In a country with almost no transparency, where graft is institutionalized and workers have little recourse to the rule of law, incentives to lie about business practices vastly outweigh incentives to tell the truth. Harney reveals that despite a decade of monitoring factories, outsiders all too often have no idea of the conditions under which goods from China are made. She exposes the widespread practice of using a dummy or model factory as a company's false window out to the world, concealing a vast number of illegal factories operating completely off the books. Some Western companies are better than others about sniffing out such deception, but too many are perfectly happy to embrace plausible deniability as long as the prices remain so low. And in the gold-rush atmosphere that's infected the country, in which everyone is clamoring to get rich at once and corruption is rampant, it's almost impossible for the Chinese government's own underfunded regulatory mechanisms to do much good at all.

But perhaps the most important revelation in The China Price is how fast change is coming, one way or another. A generation of Chinese flocked from the rural interior of the country to its coastline, where its factory work largely is, in the largest mass migration in human history. But that migration has slowed dramatically, in no small part because of widespread disenchantment with the way of life the factories offer. As pollution in China's industrial cities worsens and their infrastructure buckles, and grassroots activism for more legal recourse grows, pressures are mounting on the system that will not dissipate without profound change. Managing the violence of that change is the greatest challenge China faces in the near future, and managing its impact on the world economy is the challenge that faces us all.

Genres: China, Nonfiction, Economics, Business, Politics, Asia, Audiobook

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 27, 2008

Reviews

[Raghu Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book on the subject of the economic miracle in China and what lies underneath this miracle that enables the seemingly eternal low cost products from China. Alexandra harney has done extensive research, delving deep into the real price of the low-cost goods from China and comes out with startling revelations. Unlike other books on 'the China price', Harney is very balanced and fair in her analysis and investigations and conclusions. She speaks both Mandarin and Japanese and has lived many years in Hong Kong. This enables her to do justice to the subject.
In short, the picture that emerges about the Chinese economic miracle is as follows:
Western multinationals put intense pressure on getting the best quality thing as soon as possible for the lowest price from the Chinese factories. This pressure, combined with the Chinese govt's pressure on local govts to increase growth, local govt corruption and slack adherence to labor laws or working conditions results in factory managers exploiting workers with low wages, hazardous working conditions and harassment and fear, delivers the product at the 'China price'. The pressure is high on the factories because there are any number of factories in coastal China manufacturing the same product and Western companies will gravitate towards the lowest price for the same quality. Strict adherence to international working conditions or even Chinese laws will only result in the cost of production going up thereby making the factory lose market share and eventually close down. So, there is constant pressure on factories to cut corners, on the part of local administrators to overlook labor law violations through bribery and on the part of multinationals to relax while auditing these companies. In fact, professional organizations have come up in China which help factories falsify records so that they can pass the audit. It is widespread. Another technique is to have a 'model' factory that passes the audit while the real production occurs in shadow factories (unrecorded) where violation of labor laws are rampant.
Alexandra Harney discusses extensively the auditing process and why it has failed to stop these practices so far. Apparently, 90% of all Chinese factories falsify their records. It is 60% in Vietnam and Bangladesh while 30% in India. But she also gives some hope of how things may change due to the second generation of Chinese workers demanding better pay, working conditions, health care and reasonable working hours. All this will eventually push the China price up making the multinationals think anew or move to newer places. She ends the book with the soul-searching words:
"In the end, as much as the responsibility lies with Beijing, it also lies with the global consumer. Our appetite for the $30 DVD player and the $3 T-shirt keep jewellery factories filled with dust, illegal mines open and 16-year olds working past midnight. We all pay the China price".
The book is a must read.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was over 10 years old when I read it, I would love to know how the last 10 years have affected things.

[Gator · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to War Room Pandemic, a pod cast hosted by the one and only Stephen K. Bannon, he constantly has great authors on the show to talk about the books they have written pertaining to the dangers of China. This is my second one to date and they don’t disappoint. America has sold its soul in order to get cheap items from slave labor with little to zero thought into what it is we are really purchasing. The China Price is real, and it’s killing us slowly, if we don’t snap out of our dependency on China after this SARS 2/COVID-19 fiasco I believe we are doomed to play supplicant to the CCP for a very long time. The manufacturing independence we had post WW2 is what this country needs in order to keep them at bay, otherwise we will wind up paying the ultimate price, that’s how serious this problem is. The China Price is Great book and definitely worth reading.

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

MUST READ. Many people eating meat would rather not find out how the animals are killed and processed. Likewise, we all enjoy affordable products manufactured or assembled in China, but few of us have much understanding of precisely what people do to provide these billions of products at such low prices to our big name brands and distributors. The overwhelming human sacrifices and environmental damages often concealed to achieve these low prices is haunting. That said, the work has provided incomes to raise a lot of people out of poverty.

Alexandra Harney did an awesome job investigating and researching for this book. Although it was written prior to the global economic downturn, this book still is pretty current with a comprehensive analysis. Her writing is informative, colorful, thought-provoking, and objective. She did a superb job seeking out the right people and asking the right questions. I enjoyed reading about the people she interviewed and in some cases followed around. These people included an illegal coal miner in Shanxi, a factory girl in Guangdong, two different impressive "model" factory managers, Zhang Yisheng and Yin Guoxin, a self-taught lawyer Zhou-Litai who became a celebrity winning payouts for workers, as well as representatives of major brands such as Wal-Mart, Reebok, Adidas, Timberland, VF, GAP, Levi Strauss, and analysts, such as Jason Kindopp and Daniel Rosen, at various think-tanks and advisory firms.

Some of our big name brand corporations actually have increased costs by sending inspectors to audit factories for health and safety, but the big name brand corporations still seek the lowest prices, thereby prompting the competing factories to agree to terms so low they are impossible to meet without secretly compromising health and safety at other undisclosed locations. China's government in Beijing has passed some pretty good labor laws and health and safety laws, but due to the structure of China's local political economy, Chinese people's shared drive for more money combined with Western corporations drive for the lowest prices, many laws are commonly not enforced at the local level.

Managers of factories are exceedingly competitive. In order to stay competitive and not lose contracts, they must lie to safety and health inspectors, pay bribes, or cut any number of corners. They do it to stay afloat and make money. Many factory managers argue that if they don't cut corners, their competitors will--to win the contracts--because Western brands seek the lowest prices.

Implementing and enforcing a sound set of regulations has been an uphill battle. A significant portion of the factory owners and local government officials ignore environmental, labor, and health and safety laws, in order to get more money, either by achieving higher GDP for their area, or higher profits for their business, or by receiving bribes to supplement their salary.

Chinese judges and courts, with government backing, have been increasingly awarding plaintiffs more compensation to pressure small factory owners to better adhere to health and safety standards. Also, NGO groups have succeeded in better informing migrant workers of the Chinese laws. There have been improvements.

Nonetheless, migrant workers continue to accept the most dangerous jobs in the most unhealthy conditions, often at small, unofficial, hidden facilities monitored by no one at all. Rural, migrant workers, limited by the hukou system, sacrifice everything out of necessity and/or ignorance.

Yet the costs extend far beyond the individual family lives of the migrant workers. In aggregate, the health care costs and the environmental damage is enormous.

People thought they could save tons of money by moving factories to China and asking for the lowest prices. And the Chinese, eager to earn more money, agreed to do the work for the impossibly low prices. In order to achieve results when the costs exceed the prices, people obviously were lying or falsifying documents at one point or another.

Just like borrowing on a credit card or taking a mortgage on a house, we can enjoy immediate gratification while pushing the costs to a later day, again and again, but eventually those costs will mount and bear down on all of us who initiated the original off-setting act.

For the last 30 years, we've been in a position to get the Chinese to manufacture products at impossibly low prices, and they have done it. And now that so many products are manufactured or assembled there, the Chinese are increasingly in a position to ask our government, corporations, and organizations to help them pay for the environmental and worker health care costs.

Alexandra Harney concludes that responsibility for the hidden costs of "the China price" seems to be shared equally between the consumers of the world and the government of China. "Although Beijing drafts policy, it has traditionally left enforcement of these policies to local governments... China is also realizing the downside of its historic reliance on local governments to enforce policy and is trying to bring more power back to the center... One question is whether Beijing can move away from a system where local governments compete to have the least stringent law enforcement and rack up economic growth, to one where the laws are enforced more evenly and social and environmental objectives gain greater priority... Ultimately the only way to lessen the social and environmental cost of the China price is for the Chinese government to do more. The labor contract law, and to a lesser extent, the promotion of CSR (corporate social responsibility) are steps in the right direction. But more laws and policies are not the answer. Enforcement of existing laws is."

Alexandra Harney emphasizes that the answer is eliminating collusion between local government officials. Widespread enforcement of the laws has been lacking at the local government level throughout China due to economic incentives to look the other way. She says, "Law enforcement cannot be a token gesture...Without better law enforcement, China will have to continue to contend with the political and economic consequences of rising labor activism, worsening pollution, a mounting health care bill and a widening income gap."

This book is relevant to all of us, and even more so for those studying or working in manufacturing, marketing, management, human resources, labor relations, human rights, government policy, politics, labor law, occupational health and safety, environment protection, journalism, and international trade.

China's sustainable competitive advantage for attracting multinationals is not going to be low labor costs. Instead it's going to be their production capacity, specialized local infrastructure, and manufacturing expertise, which enhance the speed, convenience, and quality of manufacturing to export. The Chinese advantage is in its highly concentrated factory clusters in export zones, which already have major transportation hubs and shipping ports. Besides leveraging economies of scale, these factory clusters in China increase their efficiency (faster lead times) and quality of production by working with neighboring dependent businesses that efficiently service the factories with parts, machinery repairs, materials, ready transportation, etc. In effect, the entire supply chain is clustered together. China's highly concentrated factory clusters, which in some instances may manufacture or assemble a larger proportion of the products than anywhere else in the world, make it difficult for other countries to provide comparable infrastructure that is equally specialized, even when those countries undercut Chinese labor costs.

China's government leaders aim to switch its economy from labor-intensive export industries to more innovative and higher value-added industries and more domestic consumption. The government has run pilot insurance programs for urban residents and pilot health care programs for rural residents, to encourage lower savings and higher consumption.

Improving China will also require additional government investments in environment, health and safety. The management consultancy AT Kearney estimated that upgrading China's food safety system (standards, training, transport, warehousing) will cost $100 billion.

The government is removing incentives for energy-intensive and heavy polluting industries and providing new incentives for high tech. industries. This will require more creativity and domestic business development by China's engineers and university graduates. The government, however, has been concerned about high unemployment among recent university graduates. Every year, 15 million more people will need jobs.

The consultant Daniel Rosen added that China has lacked a history of judicial interpretation, which is necessary to provide the businesses producing higher value-added goods with a more predictable legal system.

The 1.3 billion people of China face some enormous challenges but should have a bright future.

[Judd Street · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The China Price' serves as a decent overview to many of the themes with respect to manufacturing in China (e.g., working conditions, migration, unionization, etc). It does a good job of addressing these themes in a fairly accessible way with individual stories illustrating larger trends. It also does so with paying appropriate heed to the tensions involved: conditions can be both deplorable and represent improvements; people can feel like the system offers both constraints and opportunities; there can be significant concern with Chinese factory conditions while also being concerned about potentially worse conditions if manufacturing were to move elsewhere.

Many of the ides within the book might not feel new to those who have followed the news of the past two decades. The idea of poor working conditions and limited labour rights, for instance, is not particularly novel if you've been at all aware of some of the darker sides of globalization. The book also could stand for an updating, as new issues have emerged in the world's relationship with China in the last 13 years. But, Harney's book is a reasonable one that I'd use if I were trying to introduce someone to these big themes, and covers them without being either excessively apologist nor unfairly critical.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Harney treated the whole subject of "The China Price" with a good deal of acumen and sensitivity. Yes, there have been (and probably still are) sweat-shop-like conditions in the world's most populous country. But her own assessment seems to indicate that the more China has engaged the rest of the world the better those conditions have become, even if not at a pace that makes everybody happy. I remember encountering very similar conditions in India, yet when you talk with those engaged they are very pleased to have useful work to do that takes them up, bit by bit, out of their poverty.

For China, I found myself chuckling several times as Harney describes the lengths that "managers" would go to in avoiding telling the true story of their manufactory by having parallel bookkeeping, duplicate/fake time cards, and "subcontractors," who were little more than alternative, but hidden, plants - one would think that the Party would have figured out better means of tracking down the revenue generators in the economy. A very informative narrative.

[Etherine Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fair, objective look at labor in China. Informative, eye opening, as to how private US companies like Walmart are able to offer goods at low prices, and written in such a way that analyzes practices and culture instead of just calling out a few key players and their wrongdoings. At the end there's provided ideas as to how China and the rest of the world can help to build a better global economy that allows workers to be fairly compensated and have decent working conditions!

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clearly shows that China's growth is predicated on the exploitation of labor ---more capitalist (circa industrial age) than communist.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although it’s outdated it was still really eye opening and well researched

[Jerel Bonner]

Capitalism Returns to It's Roots

As the Great Recession of the new millennium speeds towards its third anniversary since it started in December of 2007, unemployed US workers of all job levels are once again asking, "When will companies begin hiring again?" This second recession within 9 years will once again be followed by a more severe job-less recovery. The China Price does an awesome job of walking the reader through today's economic practices of large corporations operating in China, and how the Communist Party, Chinese business owners, and the people of China adapt to it. Though I am not sure if that was the author's intention, it is the true gem of this book.

As I began to read this book, after being in China for 6 plus years, many of the stories were similar to what I had heard or experienced. Then I began reading chapter seven, "Account and Accountability".

The China Price is filled with stories about Chinese factories, their owners, and their workers trying to get by and make money. It has it all, child labor, long working hours, corruption, labor activists, safety and health, and pollution issues. It focuses on how the Central and local governments adjust policy to maintain the country's stability. If one reviews the American labor movement, you would think you were rereading the US labor history just before the Great Depression.

Once you get to chapter 7, you then realize that capitalism has returned to its roots of 20th century. In this chapter Alexandra Harney does a spectacular job of telling the rest of the world, how the Central and local governments have outsourced the enforcement of their own labor laws to the same buyers that are trying to avoid these same responsibilities back in their home countries. Hence, the lack of improvement of working conditions in China.

Herein lays the oxymoron of capitalism. The CEO's and large shareholders of these companies don't want to enforce Chinese laws, they don't want to be regulated by any government, and they don't want to pay fair wages to any employee, anywhere. They liked things the way they were in the early 1900's. These companies know how China operates. They understand that Chinese factory owners will not follow the laws or regulations if they believe these rules will hold them back from making profits. These conglomerates take just enough action to appease the labor activists on college campuses and else where, only to protect their brand image. In the board rooms of these businesses their CEO's have already begun forecasting their ROI from their next plant relocation to China. The China Price tells you how it all comes together.

Hence, if you want to know where your next paycheck will come from, learn how the China Price is making your current employer figure out how to get you off the payroll, as they consider their options of moving your assignment to China. And as sure as I am writing this review, they are! Read the China Price, and learn how improving working conditions in China will bring your job back home.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating, although somewhat disabling: every time I learn about international trade I decide as a matter of conscience I really can't buy anything made overseas for fear it's been made under terrible conditions. And since 98% of what I own was made in China, that's sort of a problem.

People in the West (like me) don't want their stuff made in sweat shops. But they do want it cheap. Brands and big stores (like Target) want to sell their stuff for very cheap while not looking like they're inhumane AND while not losing any profit. So they keep their prices artificially low and their profits artificially high by making everything in China. They also keep their image artificially bright by imposing standards of good working conditions on their suppliers: standards that cannot be met given the price and time demands they also impose.

Given that historically the Chinese migrant workers (who come in, undocumented, from the countryside to the city) have been willing to work for almost nothing, and the equation works. But the book argues that the path is unsustainable for China, and at some point, possibly soon, something in the model will have to change because China cannot indefinitely afford to provide so many of the world's goods while getting such a narrow margin of profit in return.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a country with almost no transparency, where graft is institutionalized and workers have little recourse to the rule of law, incentives to lie about business practices vastly outweigh incentives to tell the truth. Harney reveals that despite a decade of monitoring factories, outsiders all too often have no idea of the conditions under which goods from China are made. She exposes the widespread practice of using a dummy or model factory as a company's false window out to the world, concealing a vast number of illegal factories operating completely off the books.

This book is very thoroughly researched -- it is clear the author both speaks Chinese and has a good understanding of the culture and history. Furthermore, it is a very balanced account - neither demonizing Walmart, the Chinese government, nor factory owners, but provides a good understanding of how each part fits into the big picture. Personally, I found the level of detail just right and the anecdotes very revealing. This is a very good survey of the hidden costs of cheap Chinese manufacturing. The anecdotes are poignant and powerful. The prose is a little dry.

Worth a listen if you are interested in the other side of outsourcing and want to get an idea of how life is like for the laborers that probably made 9/10ths of the consumer good in your house.

[Azwa Ahmad · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the end of the day, I believe that we –the government, corporations, producers and consumers, share equal burden to right the wrongs and must be morally responsible to alleviate the pain shouldered heavily by the poor (always the lot most susceptible to exploitation in most of cases).

When these companies reallocate themselves to countries that could offer them much lower costs of production; this would only shift the same exploitative power to that particular country. Hence, the same problem would continue to persist, only in different countries -poor countries, I reckon. Take what happened in Bangladesh recently as an example.

Vicious cycle, really. Governments bow in front of the big corporations; ones that would manipulate their power onto the producers, compressing the producers’ margins but expanding theirs, and inevitably, the ones who would suffer most because of this would invariably be the vulnerable people; people that would turn to the governments seeking for help only to realize that they are bowing to the corporations instead, not even looking into their weary eyes, could not even hear they are shouting for help from that side.

For how long would we all live trampling over these very lives?

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harney reveals the hardships of workers in China as they work for what is way below the minimum wage of the West. In a specific chapter, Harney profiles young, female factory workers who spend long 12-15 hour days in factories, while boarding in a 12-person room in the cities, just so they could send money back to their family back in the rural farms. As a Chinese-Canadian reading this, it really made my heart sink. To me, Harney's reporting further re-affirmed the cruel arbitrary nature that is the lottery of birth and how it still, (even to this day when we all pat our shoulders in ridding of the socioeconomic immobility and that working hard translates to financial stability) has a direct effect on our quality of life. It's frustrating, but necessary reminder that we still have a long way to go.

[John Pombrio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book totally surprised, dismayed, and taught me to understand how miserable the bottom line in price can actually be. A must read!
I read an article in Wired magazine that told a piece of this story, but the toil of tens of millions of migrant Chinese young women workers who voluntarily work 14 to 16 hour days just blew me away. How China is caught in a price war while trying to satisfy workers rights. How pollution can be so bad to save those extra pennies. Thousands of small companies right next to each other making the exact same product and how their fortunes can change in days. A fascinating read! You will never look at the tag "made in China" the same way again.

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this audiobook from the library, and it is already out of date. I think most people know what is going on in China - poor wages and poor working conditions for the workers as a way to keep prices low. This is because they have to keep costs unrealistically low to compete against other companies who all want contracts from American and European companies, who are competing against each other to get the consumer's dollars. One thing that is changing the whole scenario is China's "One Child" policy, because the number of workers is declining. It was an interesting book, even if there were no real surprises.

[Stokespower · Rating 3 out of 5]

very readable account of the chinese economy, in the same style as fast food nation or no logo.
it didn't really tell me anything i didn't know - china is competitive as it has lots of labour, poor regulation and unenforced labour laws, lots of symbiotic relationships with other manufacturing industries and good infrastructure.
the best chapter deals with the human side of the factory - the girls who work the floors and the life that is dictated to them by this. shame this personal touch isn't applied more.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

very insightful - I read two books about this subject around the same time and they more or less supported
the same conclusions, basically that the cost of production is so low b/c huge American companies such as Walmart insist on the lowest price, and since most of the people immigrating to the cities from the rural areas needing jobs are presently uneducated, unskilled and unsophisticated, they will accept poverty wages and miserable working/living conditions. For the time being anyway - as UNIONIZATION is starting to gain some ground.

[Mazola1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reporter's eye view of the cost of the so-called "China price" to its trading partners, to the global economy, to the environment and to China itself. It explains why and at what cost China is hooked on cheap exports. Fairly dry reading in places, but often made less so by the inclusion of the stories of Chinese workers and factory owners and managers. Are we willing to pay more to avoid the cost of the China price or will we all continue to demand the China price?

[Allisonperkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good overview of what it means to buy something from China in today's world. From the corruption to the lax regulations to where the future has to go - very well thought our and researched.


The big question left unanswered is can China and the world find the solution? For the world can we learn that cheaper pricing doesn't equal better and for China can it learn to work with its people, industry and environment before its too late.

Well worth a read

[Eric Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not the book for people who want to remain ignorant and believe what they buy doesn�t matter. Especially starting with chapter 7, Harney lays out the crux of the China Price: social accountability and cost reduction are conflicting demands that American brands are almost universally (simultaneously) demanding. The book contains real insight as the author proves adept at understanding both businesses and people (a rare gem) and provides ample stories and evidences throughout the book.

[Mostafa Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a stunning book.

The china price shows how Workers are literally crushed in sweatshops to provide us with the cheap products. In a country where sending your child to elementary school costs a fortune, parents have to leave their children behind to work 14 hours 7 days to earn as little as $150 per month.

This book accentuate the necessity to change the existing trading system before it is too late.

[Lee Nave Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author brought a prose like approach to a book with an economic theme. Using real life stories yet still researching the overall market made the message more powerful. Also having Corporate retailers, suppliers, and workers all speak about the issue of the "china price" gave many needed perspectives. I however would have liked the inclusion of a Chinese government official's opinion as well.

Great read for anyone interested in China, economics, and what offshoring jobs really looks like.

[Ravi Warrier · Rating 2 out of 5]

The controversial topics of the book are perhaps today more well-known than they might have been when the book was written and hence for reasons unattributed to the author or the book, it wasn't a very informative read.
And even though I didn't quite particularly enjoy reading the book, it does have substance and for those who aren't abreast of the problems of Chinese workers and economy, this book might be money and time well spent.

[B. Cheng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the book not always "aging" well in parts, it does a great job in showing a variety of sides in the China factory world, be it companies choosing China, the factory owners, and the employees. While I've always felt Chinese factories were able to produce high quality products if the foreign company's QC was up to snuff, the book shows that there are often deeper layers that can make it harder for a company to fully track what is going on.

[Manfred · Rating 3 out of 5]

The individual stories in this book are solid, giving a great sense of what China's economy means for working people, managers and foreign investors. Her descriptions of the weird world that is the Pearl River Delta are right on target. Harney is especially good when she challenges the CSR industry.

[Ever · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those books that makes you think again before buying anything not made in America or clearly labeled "fair trade". I'd like to say people wouldn't buy cheap products anymore after reading about the human and environmental costs, but the spirit of consumerism is so strong here that I honestly don't know what people would choose to do.

[Ravi Jain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of Cheap electronics and fancy ties,
Of millions of workers and their cries.
Wish to know where the truth lies,
Find it in our review of "The China Price"

Read the review here: China Price Book Review

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Falling prices...and how big companies around the world are able to get products so cheap! This is a good overview of how China is able to be the big producer for the rest of the world and it explains what the true costs are to the Chinese people.

[Carl · Rating 3 out of 5]

An important book. It explains why you can buy a DVD player at Walmart for $30.