Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2017 July 2

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July 2

Chinese knockoffs

Why do Chinese factories make knockoffs? I don't understand. Rmaster1200 (talk) 03:51, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

The Wikipedia article titled Counterfeit consumer goods might be a good place to start your research. It does note that about 95% of such goods come from China. --Jayron32 04:36, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

As for why, the Chinese government does little to prevent it, and may even tacitly approve, as it's a quick way to steal wealth from other nations. StuRat (talk) 06:28, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

Here's a fairly good study. One of the contributing issues is that, as the most populous country in the world, China has an enormous and cheap workforce potential. This, often combined with cheap materials, means low production costs, so businesses are happy to churn out anything bearing the name of luxurious brands to attract buyers. Also, a good example is a foldable 3D book for children. With print run reaching several thousands copies, each such foldable book should be made by hand, as automatics can't handle such a delicate and precise production. So their production is ordered to the Chinese. Brandmeister^talk 13:42, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

• I don't either. Trying to buy or commission high quality goods from China is an uphill struggle, as they themselves fail to realise why the West might want to buy these, rather than simply having them made cheaper and cheaper.

I ride a Chinese mountain bike. Solid titanium frame, it's a beautiful work of craftsmanship. Clearly China can make high-end work. Yet when I try to buy from Chinese factories, my first batch is often mixed my second batch is great and then the third and subsequent batches become lower quality and cheaper, and the Chinese supplier wants me to be grateful that they've managed to reduce the price for me. I cannot communicate that this is the opposite of what I want. Andy Dingley (talk) 15:39, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

China also sells relatively decent and inexpensive analogues of Western goods, so if you don't want to spend much, you may search for a Chinese equivalent. Sometime ago I saw a realistic sex doll on Alibaba for only several tens bucks, the same stuff is typically sold elsewhere at more than 600$. Brandmeister^talk 19:10, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

When your sex doll is 95% off, there's a reason it's 95% off. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 02:35, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

Agreed. Stella Mudd comes to mind: [1]. :-) StuRat (talk) 07:07, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

Be careful what you order from China: [2] 94.195.147.35 (talk) 08:02, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

Weak intellectual property law is a significant factor - they simply don't see copying a brand as a problem. Roger (Dodger67) (talk) 11:20, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

I once read an anecdote: A westerner visited a Chinese factory. Saw clothing being manufactured. In the morning, they did the "cheap generic stuff" runs. In the evening, the same exact clothing - just these were the "fancy" bunch, with the precious Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger labels sewed on. I don't know if this is true, but it sounds plausible. Eliyohub (talk) 18:28, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

Note that many Western companies do the same thing, making the same product in both "name brand"/"luxury" and "generic"/"economy" versions, and charging different prices. This is an important part of price discrimination, to get suckers to pay more, but to also sell to the rest of the people, as well, at a price where they can still make a profit. One example was the Cadillac Cimarron/Chevrolet Cavalier. StuRat (talk) 02:03, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Because there's a market for it, and because the government is not sufficiently motivated to stamp it out. IP-poor countries often do not see IP laws in the same light as IP-rich countries. For example, India takes a very anti-IP stance on pharmaceuticals. For countries that are keen to boost their export economy, making cheap knock-offs is often an easy way to start, as Japan and Korea did only a few decades ago. The hope is that, with more experience and better resources companies that start off making cheap knock-offs will eventually transition into innovators, but no-one can be sure whether that will happen. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 12:28, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Location is Prague

Hi, does anybody know where this is in prague, or around prague. Sta Poleit, Prague Thanks. scope_creep (talk) 15:57, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

More context please. Sounds like an abbreviation for "Staatspolizeileitstelle Prag". --Pp.paul.4 (talk) 19:04, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

I think your right, you have hit it on head, first go. It is from this article, I think the Research Office of the Reich Air Ministry.Research_Office_of_the_Reich_Air_Ministry#Cryptanalysis_Successes_By_Country scope_creep (talk)-. It is the Czech Nazi state police. scope_creep (talk) 18:22, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

German tanks

Some WWII-era German tanks had some sort of striated coating or cladding (see image). What is that? My guess is that it is some form of ceramic. — 2606:A000:4C0C:E200:A975:997:5261:F444 (talk) 18:43, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

This is Zimmerit. --Pp.paul.4 (talk) 19:14, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

Thanks. — 2606:A000:4C0C:E200:A975:997:5261:F444 (talk) 19:59, 2 July 2017 (UTC)