Oculus CEO to Australians: Go Ahead and File a Complaint

GamersNexus: "Oculus Rift CEO Palmer Luckey took fire all throughout last week's CES, a show we covered extensively, thanks to his company's near-doubled Oculus Rift pricing over the initial $350 estimate. The company claims it's selling the Rift at “almost cost” with its $600 price-point, and has definitely tempered its financial hit with the inclusion of a free Xbox controller."

[BigBosss]

I'm from Sydney, Australia and this is a total rip-off!

[Neonridr]

agreed, the fact that the shipping is astronomical, along with being taxed twice is simply ridiculous. The least Palmer could do is say he will look into it...

I hope us Canadians don't get some ridiculous shipping charges along with double taxes.

[BigBosss]

I've heard Canadian price is around 800 to 850 bucks

[Bdub2000]

This whole Oculus launch Doesn't seem to be going well. Just another stain on the VR hype train.

The one good thing about the $600 price, I won't be buying it anytime soon. So that will at least ensure I don't drop $600 if it flops within a year. Now I am forced to wait it out and see how it does.

[Neonridr]

@BigBosss - well it was $914 CDN once you factor in conversion and such. There was additional prices already calculated after the $849 price. Who knows how much extra they will gouge us once the thing actually ships.

[Eonjay]

@Bdub2000

No, Luckey is just really really bad at PR. Like everything he says is wrong.

[uth11]

@Bdub - if "not going well" is selling all your stock and having to back order, then what does a successful launch look like?

[JackBNimble]

It's all about the exchange rate.
I am Canadian and I still would be paying $600 usd, but that equals around $800 cnd.

You're still paying $600 American dollars.

[krazeecain]

Crap, I'm Canadian and I forgot our dollar is so shitty... Damn this sucks. Why are they charging $600 USD for a little LCD panel and some leds?!

[ziggurcat]

@bigboss:

the price will depend on the US exchange rate. at the current rate, it'd be priced at (likely) $849. if the Canadian dollar dips even further, it could be closer to $1000.

[Neonridr]

well hopefully they honor our preorder prices at least.. *fingers crossed*

[Phunkydiabetic1]

What the hell does the shipping cost and double tax have to do with the Rift? Nothing. Once again a bunch of neckbeard man children whining over bullshit.

[Bdub2000]

@Eonjay

My comment has nothing to do with Luckey or his PR skills, not sure why you're replying "no" to me.

@UTH11

Well said, except I was referring to the recent negative publicity on its launch. Easy to sell all your stock when its limited supply, but I'm sure it will be successful nonetheless.

[Pogmathoin]

When consecutive federal governments allow Bell, Rogers and Telus to rape us, you really believe it will get better for OR?

[Neonridr]

@Phunkydiabetic1 - ummmm... did you read the article at all? Or did you just show up here to act all tough and cool?

The fact that you are receiving a product that is shipping locally, yet being charged shipping charges that would amount to more than it would cost to ship it internationally, while also being subjected to twice the taxes is a little bit of a concern regarding A LOT of people's preorders for the Rift that don't live in the good ol' US of A.

[PizzaSteve]

Don't buy it. Seriously people don't fall for the VR hype. It's something you can live without or just wait till it drop price with more software available.

[SunnyZ]

*cough* nintendo power glove *cough*

It's something you can live without...forever

I cant even game wearing headphones, stuffed if im gonna play a game with a bloody screen on my face, plus with that thing covering my eyes how am I meant to see my keyboard?

Jut randomly guess where the buttons are. YAY!

[Ken85]

Dont tell people what not to buy. Everyone has diffrent taste and intrest. VR isnt for everybody, but I'm super excited for the next generation of tech.

[IamTylerDurden1]

Just don't buy the 1 that is trying to rip you off. VR is legit and i can't wait for Rigs and No Man's Sky on PSVR but Oculus and Palmer are a bunch of ripoff artists.

[Neonridr]

@SunnyZ - I am guessing you don't game a lot on your PC if you can't even find the WASD keys without looking down at your hands.

[Ogygian]

Well we can live without video games, but that doesn't mean they're not immensely enjoyable!

[moomin]

Can we be clear on this. Occulus VR on PC is not going well at the mo. But don't tarnish Vive, Sony VR or Microsoft hololens with the same brush. Those other companies have yet to announce their price, target audience and get proper reviews from industry experts. Your outburst because u personally distrust VR (without even physically trying it yourself? or have u experienced bad on OR) either makes you a fool or impatient. Will you at least give VR a go then remark later? Makes common sense right? Millions of new jobs from developers, game artists, delivery guys, those out of jobs are hoping this new industry succeeds cos millions of families and singles need to make a living. nice one bro

[TimelessDbz]

How is it going to get software support when you are telling people not to buy it ...

[krazeecain]

@SunnyZ If you can't even game with headphones on then you're obviously in a bizarre minority of people that aren't suited for VR. Look beyond the tip of your nose and you'll see a large group of people who can and will enjoy VR.

[Apollosupreme]

This is sound advice. If VR truly is the future and truly will be a standard device, a staple in every gamers room then surely waiting a year or two means little to nothing in the big scheme of things.

Save your money. See which of the big three emerges top dog. See what big houses signs on to which device. By then you'll be able to make a good investment at a more reasonable price... OR if this all fails you can buy a used one at a fraction of the price.

[kenwonobi]

Or just wait till PSVR. Oculus Rift isn't all Virtual Reality options.

[Dark11]

Helping Palmer with his kickstarter was a huge mistake.

[The Great Melon]

If you actually helped the Kickstarter you would be receiving a complementary consumer version at no cost. I wouldn't be complaining if I were you. I regret not backing it when I discovered the campaign on its last day.

[rocketpanda]

You do know the kickstart backers are getting the unit at no charge, some kind of goodwill gesture I guess. Still doesn't excuse the terrible territorial pricing.

[Lamboomington]

Oh please.

n4g armchair specialists have been reading a bunch of clickbait headlines recently, and forming opinions based on that. Needless to say, the title to this article is also bullshit, and paints an inaccurate picture.

"Helping Palmer with his kickstarter was a huge mistake"

lmao, speak for yourself. Oculus is one of the main reasons we're going to see high quality VR, and also the reason we're going to see rapid innovation in the long run. They're doing what is the best for VR. They are the biggest team working on VR right now, with enough money, time and manpower to make it all a reality. Tons of R&D going on as well.

They could have sold polished DK2s for $450 and raked in so many more orders. Thankfully they didn't do that. They made the necessary steps to deliver a high quality VR experience.

[kotaku77]

Then... go ahead File a complaint!

[Lamboomington]

Ofcourse, Palmer never actually said anything like that in the way you said it. Another clickbait title swallowed up by n4g commenters.

Please go and actually read the article, go to the reddit page and read the context.

[nowitzki2004]

I am not from Australia and do not ever want to go there (way too many things that can kill me lol). I do not support Oculus on this at all. This is a slap in the face to gamers in general because Australia has very high prices for gaming software and hardware but continue to support the gaming industry. Cant someone start a petition to bring prices down a bit? Its really not asking for that much is it?

[Tacklebait]

They are already selling the rift at a loss.

[nowitzki2004]

@Tackle

Yeah they are even in the US... Supposedly. How would you feel about paying $200-$300 more than the rest of the world?

[UnHoly_One]

Is John Carmack still affiliated with Oculus? I haven't heard anything about him in a long time.

[Tacklebait]

He is still there.

[Seafort]

They should have just launched it in US market first.

Once they've got to the stage where they have mass production going and a lower price launch it in other countries.

Palmer Luckey doesn't seem to be doing himself any favours with his arrogant and out of touch attitude.

Maybe he should have a bit of empathy for fans of his product as he wasn't a millionaire when he started the kickstarter but after Facebook bought out Oculus Rift.

It's seems to be true that money and power changes a person...into an arrogant prick.

[Lamboomington]

"Palmer Luckey doesn't seem to be doing himself any favours with his arrogant and out of touch attitude.

Maybe he should have a bit of empathy for fans of his product as he wasn't a millionaire when he started the kickstarter but after Facebook bought out Oculus Rift.

It's seems to be true that money and power changes a person...into an arrogant prick."

Again, swallowing clickbait titles and coming to silly conclusions. Palmer didn't actually say "Go ahead and file a complaint!". Maybe read the source material and see how the comment came up as a reply. "Feel free. Should be interesting to see their response" or something.

It's funny, the guy's a millionaire (?), but he's stated that for the OR, he's going to use only the recommended spec for his personal gaming, so that he doesn't go out of touch with the majority of customers.

I'm assuming you're also referring to the time when Palmer apparently said the rift is "Obscenely Cheap"
Again, another clickbait title taken as true by n4g armchair experts.
"Obscenely Cheap FOR WHAT IT IS"
completely different. He said you're getting an insanely good deal on the hardware. He never said the OR is a cheap product (he's been implying the opposite for quite a while now)

Everyone's making him out to be this arrogant asshole who sold his soul to big coorporations. Anyone who actually reads source material, watches interviews etc can see that's not true at all.

[3-4-5]

* That does suck, but it's not mandatory to buy it.

You don't HAVE to have one....

[showtimefolks]

Like other gimmicks VR will launch and in few years forgotten. Playstation VR will do better because Sony can price it anything below 600 and it will sell better than competition

And don't give me the crap about one being better

For oculus you also need a high end pc so the cost just isn't 599 and go play. You need a machine that can handle it well

Oculus is like Xbox one and playstation VR is like ps4.

Price matters to most consumers. To select few pc elite gamers congrats you can feel good about your self but to rest of us price does matter

[bluzone]

I wonder what the price would be minus the Kinect and he Xbox controller.
maybe let customers save some money that way.

[hellothere1977]

luckey knows you australians will bend over and take it anyways. what does he care, really. your tears won't make his billions any less awesome.

[N311V]

$130 for shipping is crazy!

It cost me about $15 recently to send a racing wheel (driving force GT), which has to be a lot heavier and in a larger box than OR, from the Gold Coast to Brisbane. That included insurance and sign on delivery. Granted I didn't send it far (practically the same city) but you can still see the massive price difference.

[ChrisW]

@BigBoss,

Stop playing the Devil's Advocate!

You were never going to buy one the first place. If anything, you are going to be buying the PS-VR.

[DragonbornZ]

Crikey mate! Gonna catch yourself some good ones with that title!

His answer was less than satisfactory, but his answer isn't "don't like the price, go file a complaint breh".

[Rayven]

Not sure if you read the whole article. He said, and I quote;

"Feel free, would be interesting to see what they [ACCC] say"

He said this after a Reddit user threatened to file a complaint against Oculus on the Australian Consumer & Competition Commission.

This is some Konami level f*** up we're seeing here folks. It would have been a lot better if he stayed silent, instead he's going to lose a lot of trust especially among Aussie gamers.

[Ogygian]

To be honest, how else would you expect him to respond to that?

"Oh no, please don't report us; we'll do whatever you ask"?

I think the implication is that the complaint has no basis.

[jimsl1ce]

@spartanlemur

There is basis for over-charging on shipping, it is unlawful in Australia to charge more for shipping than it actually costs.

Source: I have had the difference returned to me in the past, locate within Australia under Consumer Protection Laws.

[DragonbornZ]

I did. I said that because of of his first answer being alright, understandable, but less than satisfactory. His second answer was a bit snarky, but the question asked was also and seemed unnecessary. Well it came off that way to me.

“should Australians refer their concerns to the Australian Consumer & Competition Commission to seek a formal response from Oculus?”

Takes on an unnecessary tone imo. But seeing that price would probably make me do the same lol. But I honestly want to know if this is something for the ACCC to get involved in. Cause that shipping price is crazy.

But I agree he should've stayed quiet on that one.

[DLConspiracy]

I think you and this article is blowing this out of proportion. It's not exactly great customer service. I guess the person wanted Lucky himself to sign and deliver the package for him?

You have to understand that I'm sure they as a company had to get a pricing for everything everywhere ahead of time. So im sure Luckey is saying this in response to that.

I don't know all the details behind the scenes. All I know is that the internet blows everything out of proportion. They feed on drama like it's vampires to blood. The gaming community is no different especially since everyone is whining about VR like they know how everything costs to begin with. Like they know What other devices will cost when they release. PS4 cost Brazil 1,400 when it released. That was astronomical too.

[Rayven]

@spartanlemur You don't have to say anything, especially on the internet. In this case, it would have been best if he said nothing instead of trying to be provocative while his company is in hot water among consumers.

@DLConspiracy It's not blown out of proportion when the shipping cost from Australia to Australia is as much as having something shipped from the other side of the world. This is either some serious price gouging, or really poor planning on their part. It's most likely the former since Aussies are richer than the average gamer.

[rainslacker]

@jim

Does that mean that handling charges can't be applied to shipments? While I won't defend excessive charges, typically, the S&H fee includes both the postage and the cost to pack it up and ship it.

I ask out of curiosity since I do a lot of international shipping, even to Australia, although I don't believe that I'm subject to their laws in this case because I am a US entity, and my sales are handled through a US facilitator, although that facilitator has an Australian website. I charge what the post office base charge is, however, I actually do get a pretty decent discount which isn't passed onto the buyer.

Since it appears OR is shipping to AUS from AUS though, I'd imagine they'd be subject to local laws just like I have to charge sales tax for sales that are shipped in state.

[Lamboomington]

Not sure why you've got disagrees. The title is a clickbait title period. It paints an inaccurate picture.

It's getting kind of annoying, honestly, especially after the "Obscenely cheap" clickbait title.
n4g specialists don't actually read anything but the title ofcourse, so they now all think Oculus and Palmer have sold their souls to evil corporations and have shafted customers for money and power

[DragonbornZ]

Probably people who didn't read the article and/or who are upset about the price. Hell, I would be too if I had to pay that for shipping. And also maybe the "Crikey" lol.

"It paints and inaccurate picture"

But yeah that's exactly what I meant. When I read the headline I was like "whoa holy sh*t", then I read the article and I'm like come on now.
It's incredible how much spin they put in the title for clicks. Title makes Palmer flat out look like an asshole, when he didn't even...
Man its some messed up stuff.

[Utalkin2me]

Well it might not be what people wanna hear. But at least he was honest instead of BS'ing people.

[SunnyZ]

It cost me $120 to ship A WHOLE BLOODY FULL TOWER PC to freaking Pakistan from Australia.

That thing was massive and weighed like 15kg.

The Oculus is MAYBE a kilo...

How in the world would it cost $130 to send that tiny thing locally...

[hellothere1977]

lucky wants to add your balls to his billion dollar wall.

[Morgue]

Where's Don Mattrick when you need him??

[GranTurismoFan]

Im surprised i laughed at this comment haha that never happens lool

[xtremexx]

This is gold.

[Activemessiah]

Man, Australians always get shafted with everything...

[Vipre77]

Not everything. Have you seen their beaches? Great surfing if you can avoid the sharks, killer stingrays, jellyfish, and everything else designed to kill people. Well... On second thought. You might be right. LOL

[Rebel_Scum]

Killer sting rays? That's a new one lol. Sting Ray's 99.9999999999% of the time are absolutely harmless.

[Vipre77]

Tell that to "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin. Wait... Can't.

[rainslacker]

Still worth dealing with all that for all the hot women.

[Bathyj]

Dont forget Crocs, Octopus, 7 of the top 10 deadly snakes, spiders and Bogans.

[Tsunade]

The best answer right now is to wait for PSVR.

[Eiyuuou]

Kinda irrelevant since it isn't for PC.

[alvgamin4lif]

PSVR is only for ps4 though so that's not a solution for pc gamers. Anyways for PSVR to be a success then imo it must be priced between $300-$350. Think about it, instead of buying the rift for $600 and a capable pc for $1000+ (assuming you don't have one) you can get a ps4 and PSVR for $600-$650. Same cost as the rift alone.

[DLConspiracy]

I worry about quality more than price. I don't want a blurry or dizzy experience by any means. Not suggesting either will have this but we just don't know how much the price will reflect quality yet. At least till we have all the devices on our heads.

Probably best to see which is best after they have all released. I'm not interested in buying 3 VR devices to use one. It's best to wait.

[ifistbrowni]

@DLConspiracy, Sounds like you're preparing for another console war - VR Edition.

[Salooh]

@DLConspiracy
Well , Sony so far is doing great in terms of quality of hardwares. Would feel odd if PSVR is different...

I am only worried about the quality of the software of this new tech. Hope it impress us. Sony with Tekken 7 , GT sport and ace combat is a great step but they need more for one year.

[Perjoss]

Vive

[LoveForGames]

This guys is such a dick.

[Ogygian]

I expect that's Silicon Valley rubbing off on him.

[YoungKingDoran]

Well it's either that or he's giving himself a Palmer.

[Pandamobile]

You're basing this off a cherry-picked and paraphrased quote in an AMA.

Would you rather have him recite bullshit PR jargon like the rest of the industry does, or would you rather have someone tell it like it is?

Oculus doesn't control how the Australian government taxes imported goods. The rest of his AMA seemed remarkably candid and humble for a 23 year old near-billionaire.

[Lamboomington]

Read source material, instead of swallowing clickbait titles.

Oh, and the "Obscenely Cheap" clickbait title too. You should read the source material there as well. Both of these titles paint a completely inaccurate picture, which a lot of people seem to want to jump on.

Needless to say, Palmer never actually said "Well, Go ahead and file a complaint then!"
The title is BS. Expected more from Gamersnexus.com
Again, actually read the content and the reddit AMA to get context. I can see why the statement Palmer made was not the best PR (he's not good at PR in general, as evidenced by the last few days). However, you'll easily see why this article is misleading.

In the case of the "The rift is obscenely cheap" article. That was downright pathetic. What Palmer said was "It's obscenely cheap FOR WHAT IT IS"
He even went on to explain it. You're getting a really good deal on the hardware compared to any other consumer electronics. It cost a lot to produce and so on...

He never said that it's a cheap product. He's been saying the opposite for quite a while.

[DillyDilly]

Speak with your wallet guys & make the Rift fail. This guy will be out of a job in no time after Oculus fails

[Bdub2000]

I'll speak with my wallet, but I don't want it to fail. They just need to make a few "corrections".

No gamer should want this to fail... Only fanboys would like that just to make sure "their" VR system has less competition.

[DLConspiracy]

Well said bubs

[Bathyj]

I dont think anyone interested in VR wants this to fail. If either Occulus or PSVR fail then VR as a whole will probably never take off. I dont really see these products as competing but rather promoting the medium as a whole.

A rising tide lifts all boats.

Sadly probably the only people activity hoping VR fails are people who wont be able to play it.

[sinspirit]

Hopefully the Vive has the budget VR market down. We need a teardown for Oculus by someone who realistically understands the price of the parts.

[Pandamobile]

"Hopefully the Vive has the budget VR market down."

Uh, HTC and Valve are positioning Vive to be the more high-end solution.

[Tzuno]

Don't be stupid, wait for a lower price and to be available in your country, do not board the hype train, is there any "wow" software for it now that cannot make you wait people?

[ShadowWolf712]

Good grief, talk about your masters of PR. /s

[IamTylerDurden1]

Palmer is clearly a man.

[Jayszen]

It does appear that the Aussies are getting shafted what with the huge shipping charges and paying tax twice. The answer - vote with your wallet. Don't buy the Rift if you feel what you are paying is unreasonable. The prices are bound to go down at some point so it may only be a matter of waiting for a few months after the initial release.

Oculus are not doing to well with PR at present and are beginning to lose the goodwill many of us had for it. They need to remember how Microsoft was affected by the backlash in 2013 - it lost the initiative and eventually the race.

[Gwiz]

Sony did the same if not worse, " You're going to want to have 2 jobs to be able to afford this " I mean that's not advertising,that's saying " Hey can't afford it?you might be slacking " XD.

[rainslacker]

I'd imagine the double taxation problem will go away when it gets released to retail.

I do wonder why they would double tax though. Or at least initiate the first tax. They aren't required to charge, collect, or pay the tax for orders outside their municipality. Thing is though, if they're saying they're charging tax, and the customer pays that tax, they ARE required to just give that money to the municipality, so for them, it means they get nothing from it. In fact, they probably lose a little from it, since international credit card processing costs about 2-3% of the total charge, including that tax.

The 2nd tax as far as I can tell is levied by the AUS government, and again, they gain nothing from it, but don't think they should be criticized for that, since it's just a thing that has to be done. Even if they shipped it from outside AUS, they'd have to declare the customs on it, and I'd imagine most $600 items don't just breeze through customs without the buyer having to pay duty tax, which would end up being the same as they're paying now.

[FreakyFox]

Oculus is failing, so much bad press about it at the moment, its giving VR a bad name, they need to get it sorted.

The fact that Facebook own it and the price, puts me off right away.

[Psychotica]

Not failing at all. Only bad press I have read is about the price, not about how it functions. Who gives two shits if Facebook owns it, has nothing to do with it.

[Seafort]

How does it function? Have you got yours already?

There could be a fault in the design for all you know :)

Let's see how it performs and hope there isn't any technical faults with the product or you're looking at a full recall :P

[Psychotica]

No, I haven't. How is yours working?

[OC_MurphysLaw]

Oculus Australian response and honestly their response to the world now on pricing summed up by these infamous words: Deal with it.

[Mrveryodd]

Australia to oculus , blow me

[Psychotica]

if it could I am sure sales would increase..

[Trilithon]

Id would feel more compelled to support Rift if it wasn't owned by Facebook. Luckeys net worth is estimated to be 700 million. what a scam

[jznrpg]

And the Rift was crowdfunded . I really want VR but FB and tbis guy make it hard for me to go this route. I may get one in the future but I will start with PSVR first. And see how the other pc sets pan out later.

[Lamboomington]

What are you trying to say though ? That $600 is a rip off for the rift ?

[Trilithon]

All things aside, the hardwares price tag can only be justified by its usability and that's determined by its games list. I would feel pretty silly if i spent 600$ on a Rift and it just sat on my shelf collecting dust. however, if it had a rock solid games list and i got hours of enjoyment out of it then maybe its worth it. Still a bit steep IMO and i can see the price dropping after initial release. Im sure some people will buy it just to watch porn. Ballers

[AizenSosuke]

Best answer wait for Vive and or PSVR!

[skratchy]

After all the development issues Oculus had, and now this price point, I'll probably just stick to PSVR and/or Hololens.

[Gwiz]

We're mostly getting ripped off by these ridiculous taxes attached to everything.
Shipping and all of that not having a proper $ to € ratio,there's many things that bumps these prices up,in the end though it could result in people avoiding your products,so i think it's weird these companies are not complaining.

[SynestheticRoar]

The CEO of oculus rift told the australians to get F-off. WOW.

[Roccetarius]

Well, Facebook has to make its money back somehow, and this is it.

[GrimDragon]

To hell with this technology if it doesn't have any must have games to experience it with.
I keep seeing all this VR talk from both Sony and rift and yet I've seen not a single omg must have game for either tech. Until I see a steady stream of VR games that make my jaw drop 600 dollars stays in my pocket.

[Hroach616]

Seeing as how I don't own a proper PC I'll be watching how this launch goes. But I will be getting PSVR day one. Here's hoping Sony learns from this launch, the good and the bad, and we get a better price point on the PSVR.

[rhap]

Can't wait to pay 3k USD for it here in Brazil :D:D:D:D:D:DDDDD

[iNFAMOUZ1]

most of you or some of you complaining, weren't or arent even going to get the oculus rift anyways, you just come complain cause you like stirring up controversey or your trying to bring down the oculus rift, an example would be the top 2nd comment, dude didnt even know about the canadian charge just spewing garbage

[shadowknight203]

Honestly to me it doesnt pay to be a first adopter with this tech. Its new. I personally would rather wait it out to see how it all plays out. I've lived this long without VR I can wait a litle longer
Its new in regards to it actually seems plausible that it will become standardized and not drop off the face of the earth like previous generations of VR tech has.

[SojournUK]

He didn't actually say 'Go Ahead and File a Complaint' though did he?

[Lamboomington]

Ofcourse not... not even close. Just another clickbait title, which unfortunately seems to be the largest determining factor in n4g commentator opinions.

[Revvin]

Someone take the shovel away from Palmer Luckey, the hole he has dug for himself is deep enough.

[theFAYEsorceress]

this is one of the reason why i'm more than happy to try out vr on my ps4 instead...

[Deez_Gingernuts]

It's going to cost $900 down here in New Zealand!

[windblowsagain]

Another fad.

PS version has a better chance to succeed but the same could be said for 3d.

[m2stech]

Im waiting for the Steam VR, If Im to pay $1000 then I'd rather get the more advanced one.

[BlackWolf12]

So they are shipping from a warehouse in Australia, but are charging US price and tax? in addition to Australian tax?

This can't be correct, and if it is correct, it's not legal.

The GST is a sales tax, and very similar to the tax that US retailers slap on the top of their products, however, in Australia, the sales tax is included in the advertised price of a product.

So, you CANNOT advertise something as costing $599 USD plus a US sales tax, then an Australian sales tax as well. How does that even make sense to someone with a brain? That two different countries sales taxes are being applied?

The only way this would be possible, is if Oculus had worked it out in a specific way that would deliberately apply two taxes, which would be a clear and definite example of consumer price gouging.

The ACCC will definitely have a lot to say about this.

[Psytrix]

So not only are they ripping us Aussies off, but they are getting smart when questioned about their dodgy practices? They can get stuffed. I'll wait for the PS VR instead.

[FN4GM]

Guy seems like a real prick, hope Oculus fails.

[wannabe gamer]

Im still waiting on the HTC Vice!

[kenwonobi]

If you can afford it try it. If you can't wait till PSVR. There are other options.

[N8]

I was so ready to jump into VR but the pricing is a little much. I'm in the US so this article doesn't apply to me but screw them I wouldn't buy it.

[Maul_T_Pass]

A majority of those bad mouthing the OR have never even tried it. Its truly an awesome experience. You are buying into the bleeding edge of technology. Why do you think this was going to be 'affordable' (IMO it is)? A decent gaming monitor will run you ~$600+ easy.

The rift is a HiDef monitor, includes VR, head tracking, 3D visuals, a headset, and controller. $600 is a steal for what you are getting. Plain and simple, for those of you that want to try the next big thing, this is your chance.

[Kenshin_BATT0USAI]

Click baity article is click baity, reading comprehension impaired n4gers still impaired.

[level 360]

Maybe it's the law that needs to be looked into., probably there is something there that they have seen and maybe manipulate to work in their favour to charge customers' twice in taxes.

You have to remember these companies have lawyers' that can look into these things and tell/lead them into this thinking.

[EnsignHiro]

Why is it priced so high?

[llMurcielagoll]

I really hope the ACCC turns in favor of the Australian consumer for Rift purchases. This is flippin' ridiculous.

This could very well impact Rift headset sales in Australia. For a company CEO and a business man, he'd better do something or he wont get the figures they are looking for as a company from Australian sales.