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    No Mercy / No Malice

    l2inc.com · Personal blog · on HN since 2015

    Scott Galloway's weekly newsletter on L2 Inc.'s site, covering big tech, business, marketing, and society.

    Visit blogHN submissions
    Business & StrategyTech IndustryEconomics
    What HN says

    HN commenters cite it in arguments about Amazon and other tech giants paying little tax, and about advertising; L2 also posts job listings.

    Stats for nerds
    26HN people shared it
    24linked in comments
    40story points
    Oct 2018last shared
    2015people per year2018

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    What HN people wrote when they linked it

    • seanp2k2Mar 2018

      I get that you’re being fascetious, but there are many Chinese manufacturers who will copy a product for you if you ask nicely (i.e. want a large enough volume to make it worth their time). The other common way this happens is ODMs there simply produce more of an order for a customer and sell it unbranded or under some made-up brand name. This is partially why you see so many products on Amazon with names like WinBuyer, iEnjoyWare, GooBang, Anewish, Globmall, GooDee, APEMAN, etc etc (those are all real examples). Amazon does sometimes step in and eat their lunch with AmazonBasics versions of common products (car top carry bags, camera cases, many home goods, etc). I personally do go for the AmazonBasics brands in these cases, since while they might be from the exact same factories as the GooBuy3000 version, I have higher confidence that I’ll be able to reasonably return it if it’s terrible, and moderate confidence that it’s at least a passable version of whatever it is (e.g. I own an AB umbrella and many batteries, all of which are decent).

      Amazon also has their own group of “house” brands that they go through some effort to obscure: https://www.l2inc.com/daily-insights/amazon-has-more-private-label-brands-than-you-think

    • specialistAug 2017

      FFS. Libraries?!

      How about they pay their damn taxes.

      I don't want "charity". No, I want these deadbeats to start pulling their own weight. Then we'll buy our own damned libraries.

      https://www.l2inc.com/daily-insights/winners-and-losers/tech-giants-above-the-law

      "For economies to thrive, companies need to hand over a quarter of their profits.

      But the Four Horsemen – Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook — pay far less than the average US corporate tax rate.

      Loser: future generations, who will have to pay off the debt racked up by politicians unwilling to tax the most profitable companies in the world."

    • x0x0Oct 2017

      Exactly.

      And what is particularly galling about Amazon is they essentially pay no taxes. Since 2008, Amazon has paid $1.8B in income tax while Walmart has paid $64B [1]. So they're basically leeches demanding public services while contributing virtually nothing. As someone whose name I've forgotten said, the fundamental question surrounding silicon valley / SV type companies is how do you run a country when a company with $0.5T market cap / Fortune #12 essentially pays no taxes. Who pays for roads/fire services/schools.

      [1] https://www.l2inc.com/daily-insights/no-mercy-no-malice/bread-crumbs

    • SCAQTonyOct 2015

      Luxury brands demand iconic founders: Cartier, Versace, Tesla, Ralph Lauren et al.

      Laws of luxury branding from L2 Digital, Scott Galloway Professor NYU Stern:

      "...Apple: Apple has the pillars of a luxury brand: craftsmanship, an iconic founder, an exceptional price point, vertical control of distribution, globally recognizable, and with a self-expressive benefit. It’s on it way to becoming the world’s largest luxury brand with the help of former Burberry and YSL CEOs Angela Ahrendts and Paul Deneve. ..."

      http://www.l2inc.com/the-four-horsemen-amazonapplefacebook-google-who-winsloses/2015/blog

    • traekOct 2018

      > Across the breadth range of companies built on advertising from coca cola to chanel as far as I can see they don't use internet ads.

      "Coca-Cola has just hired its first chief digital marketing officer" (2016) https://www.thedrum.com/news/2016/12/12/coca-cola-has-just-hired-its-first-chief-digital-marketing-officer-and-here-s-why

      "Chanel has been investing in other areas of digital, boasting more display and video ad impressions in the past year than almost any other brand in the study." https://www.l2inc.com/daily-insights/chanel-flaunts-digital-finesse

    • l2thinktankAug 2017

      NYC//ONSITE//FULL TIME// L2, Inc. Digital Strategy

      Hiring:
      2 Front End Devs (1-3 yrs exp & 4+ yrs exp)
      1 Full Stack Dev (1-3 yrs exp)
      1 Back End Dev (1-3 yrs exp)

      Apply here under DataTech:
      https://www.l2inc.com/jobs-at-l2

      Feel free to contact Sydnee Hosler in Technical Recruitment by email at Sydnee@l2inc.com

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