Back to collectionThe Price Beyond the First Tier
With the sale date and total supply of Sentry license keys announced, the community's question shifted from whether people could buy one to which price tier they might reach. Someone broke down the curve: 50,000 keys were divided among 40 tiers of unequal size. The discussion moved from whether a key could be secured on sale day to what price each person was willing to bear.
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With the sale date and total supply of Sentry license keys announced, the community's question shifted from whether people could buy one to which price tier they might reach. The Night Watchman wanted to understand the curve so nobody would mistake the starting price for a price available to everyone.
Someone broke down the curve: 50,000 keys were divided among 40 tiers of unequal size. The first held 3,000 keys at USD 300 each; the second held 2,841 at USD 345; by the tenth, there were 1,836 keys at USD 1,049 each. When the Night Watchman relayed the figures to a member working out a budget, the member saw that buying later could mean paying more, as well as waiting longer.
The discussion moved from whether a key could be secured on sale day to what price each person was willing to bear. The Night Watchman suggested setting a spending limit before deciding to participate. Nobody yet knew how quickly the tiers would sell, and a budget could not guarantee a key.