June 22, 2003

silhouette3.JPG From the desk of Jane Galt:

The Weird logic of internet cafes

I have paid £1 for 46 minutes of access. Hence I will use every one of those 46 minutes, even though I'd like to get to the British Museum.

We will spend the rest of the day meditating on the tragedy of MBA's who fail to come to grips with the idea of sunk costs.

Posted by Jane Galt at June 22, 2003 6:42 AM | TrackBack | Technorati inbound links
Comments
Posted by: ExpatEgghead on June 22, 2003 9:34 AM

Perhaps I being Sunday thick but what exactly did you mean?

Posted by: lpdbw on June 22, 2003 11:31 AM

Megan's being self-deprecating.
Once she spent the pound, it's over. Whether she uses the 46 minutes, or 1 minute of it, or 20, the cost is the same, and should not be the cause of forcing her to stay seated in the cafe when she wants to look at antiquities.

From:
http://economics.about.com/library/glossary/bldef-sunkcosts.htm

Definition: Costs that are irrevocable and should not be used to influence current decisions.

Posted by: John on June 22, 2003 12:42 PM

I've heard of a $1 for 15 minutes or $20 for 12 hours like I pay in New York, but 46 minutes? Who sells lots of 46 minutes?

Posted by: Dark Avenger on June 22, 2003 3:31 PM

I have a cousin from Texas who would go shopping with her Dad, which involved having to put money in the parking meters while they went to the stores. If they finished up before the meter expired, they would sit in the car until the time was used up. That's what Megan's post reminded me of, anyway.

Posted by: Errol Cavit on June 22, 2003 7:16 PM

Also a useful study in opportunity costs. Is the Brit Museum still only open during the afternoon on Sundays?

Cheers

Posted by: Matt on June 22, 2003 7:19 PM

A sunk cost can delay a decision to start doing business with a new vendor until the sunk-cost vendor contract is complete. Even if the sunk-cost vendor offers a lower margin for time remaining, you have to take into account the total cost (old vendor and new vendor) in calculating the net profit. More applicable to small-scall business models I guess, but true in that regard I think.

Posted by: Michael on June 22, 2003 7:55 PM

I have paid £1 for 46 minutes of access. Hence I will use every one of those 46 minutes, even though I'd like to get to the British Museum.

I think you're trying to convince yourself you're not addicted to the net.

"Saturday night at 11:00 and we're doing this basically real time. DO we have lives?

Posted by "Mindles H. Dreck" at June 21, 2003 10:54 PM"

Posted by: Fred Boness on June 22, 2003 8:03 PM

I've seen the British Museum. I remember it as the Royal attic. On the plus side, I did get to touch the Rosetta stone.

Posted by: Old Grouch on June 22, 2003 9:21 PM

"Who sells lots of 46 minutes?"
It's probably a new EU standard "metric hour." The remaining 14 minutes are for mandated tea break. ;o)

Posted by: Kirk Parker on June 22, 2003 9:35 PM

> I did get to touch the Rosetta stone.

Huh? I seem to remember it being quite securely protected.

Posted by: Fred Boness on June 22, 2003 10:15 PM

At the time I visited the Royal Museam, 1985, the Rosetta stone was behind a gray painted pipe rail. I just leaned over the rail. No alarms, no gunfire.

Posted by: anony-mouse on June 23, 2003 3:30 AM

In Britain? Who would have had a gun to fire?

Posted by: Kate on June 23, 2003 11:16 AM

The fox-hunters of course! Cherrio and Pip-pip!

Comments are Closed.