Videos of Jurassic Park and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were due in stores the same month. The stores ought to have been delighted at the prospect of having two blockbusters to sell, but instead...

Videos of Jurassic Park and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were due in stores the same month. The stores ought to have been delighted at the prospect of having two blockbusters to sell, but instead they were worried— how to price the videos? Both Disney (Snow White) and MCA/Universal ( Jurassic Park) were longtime proponents of MAP-minimum advertised pricing. In other words, if retailers sold the videos at prices below $14.95, the studios would not subsidize their advertising budgets. Many retailers would have liked to sell the videos at $14.95, but they were afraid competitors would undercut them. To make matters even more complicated, they had all heard rumors that Disney planned to take other steps against retailers who ignored MAP, such as delaying shipment of the next hit—The Lion King. Is MAP legal? What if the studios take “other steps”?