# Episode 763: "Stern's MAP Policy Revealed"

**Source:** Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)  
**Type:** podcast_episode  
**Published:** 2023-01-27  
**Duration:** 32m 9s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-763-map-77829270

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## Analysis

Kaneda analyzes leaked official correspondence from Stern Pinball and American Pinball to their distributors, revealing Stern's strict Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) policy implemented April 1, 2016 (and unchanged since), with three-strike enforcement, and Gary Stern's letter requiring serial number tracking and territorial exclusivity for international sales. Contrasts this with American Pinball's friendlier 2023 distributor communication, which includes financing options, deposit requirements after five pending orders, and product allocation updates for Legends of Valhalla and Oktoberfest.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Stern's MAP policy was implemented April 1, 2016 and has not been updated since — _Kaneda, directly quoting from official Stern documentation_
- [HIGH] Stern requires three-strike enforcement: written notice on first violation, order cancellation on second violation within 12 months, and relationship termination on third violation — _Kaneda, reading directly from Stern's noncompliance policy document_
- [HIGH] Stern's export business constitutes nearly 50% of their sales — _Gary Stern letter quoted by Kaneda_
- [HIGH] American Pinball requires non-refundable deposits after only five pending orders — _Kaneda, reading American Pinball's January 2023 distributor email from Max_
- [MEDIUM] American Pinball has not sold a thousand of any single game ever — _Kaneda's editorial commentary based on industry observation_
- [MEDIUM] Stern makes approximately 600 games per week — _Kaneda's comparative observation during MAP policy discussion_
- [HIGH] Stern warranty claims must be filed within 10 days of receipt of shipment — _Kaneda, reading from Stern's disclaimer of implied warranties document_
- [HIGH] Legends of Valhalla Limited Deluxe run is winding down with allocations available — _American Pinball's Max, in January 2023 distributor email_
- [HIGH] Oktoberfest is not planned for production in 2023 and expected to go through revisions if it returns — _American Pinball's Max, in January 2023 distributor email_

### Notable Quotes

> "I'm going to turn each and every one of you into a distributor for just a few minutes...I have official correspondence between Stern Pinball and its distributors."
> — **Kaneda**, ~0:30
> _Hook for the episode's central premise—revealing confidential industry documents_

> "Stern Pinball on April Fool's Day put together this for all their distros. And I also know that none of this has changed since 2016. They haven't updated this at all."
> — **Kaneda**, ~2:30
> _Highlights staleness of Stern's foundational pricing policy and irony of April 1 implementation date_

> "If you break the rule once, okay. If you break it twice, they will take away your ability to sell Stern products...Three strikes, you're out."
> — **Kaneda**, ~5:45
> _Explains harsh enforcement mechanism that shapes dealer behavior_

> "The fact that they don't want anybody to know this is, you know, I get it. Again, they're just trying to save themselves from any blowback."
> — **Kaneda**, ~7:15
> _Acknowledges why Stern keeps policy confidential despite it being legal and standard_

> "They're putting absolutely nothing in advertising and they're not advertising the price...you've been able to buy your games cheaper than everybody else...it's been a little dirty secret in the pinball world over the years."
> — **Kaneda**, ~9:00
> _Reveals common workaround to MAP policy that Kaneda suggests many dealers use_

> "Stern's brand integrity...How many times in this letter, Gary, are you going to say Stern's brand integrity?"
> — **Kaneda**, ~12:30
> _Humorous critique of Gary Stern's repetitive language in the export letter_

> "It's a tale of two companies. Stern is the huge juggernaut. Tons of legal speak indemnifying them. It's expected...American Pinball, tiny boutique company...They're much more personal."
> — **Kaneda**, ~16:00
> _Summarizes the contrast in tone and approach between manufacturers_

> "You know what's interesting about this is...not the fact that there's a nonrefundable deposit, it's that they want it after only five games ordered. I think that's such a telltale sign of the volume of orders a company like American Pinball is getting."
> — **Kaneda**, ~14:30
> _Interprets American Pinball's production constraints from distributor requirements_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer subject of leaked internal distributor agreements and pricing policy |
| Gary Stern | person | President/leader of Stern Pinball; author of export policy letter regarding brand integrity and territorial exclusivity |
| Michael O'Donnell | person | Stern Pinball contact person listed in MAP policy document for policy questions |
| American Pinball | company | Smaller boutique pinball manufacturer; contrasted with Stern for more personable distributor communications |
| Max | person | Sales and marketing manager at American Pinball who authored January 2023 distributor email |
| Kaneda | person | Podcast host of Kaneda's Pinball Podcast; source of this episode's analysis |
| Ghostbusters | game | Stern pinball game cited as example of defective playfield inserts and manufacturer warranty handling |
| Legends of Valhalla | game | American Pinball title with limited deluxe run; production winding down as of January 2023 |
| Oktoberfest | game | American Pinball title with limited production openings; no further production planned for 2023 |
| Scooby-Doo | game | Upcoming pinball game Kaneda is anticipating gameplay footage for; likely Jersey Jack Pinball based on context |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) policy and enforcement, Dealer agreements and distributor relationships, International export, territorial exclusivity, and brand integrity
- **Secondary:** Warranty claims and product liability limitations, Production capacity and volume constraints at smaller manufacturers, Pricing strategies and profit margins in the pinball industry, American Pinball vs. Stern Pinball business models
- **Mentioned:** Dealer workarounds and informal pricing practices

### Sentiment

**Mixed** (0.55) — Kaneda is informative and appreciative of transparency but mildly critical of Stern's legalistic approach and outdated policy. He praises American Pinball's friendlier tone but questions their strategy of revisiting old games. Overall tone is analytical rather than outraged.

### Signals

- **[regulatory_signal]** Stern Pinball's Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) and Unilateral Minimum Resale Price (UMRP) policy from April 1, 2016 remains unchanged and enforces strict three-strike compliance with order cancellation and relationship termination consequences (confidence: high) — Direct quotation of official Stern policy document provided by Kaneda
- **[business_signal]** Stern Pinball's export business represents approximately 50% of total sales, requiring exclusive territorial distribution through authorized importers with serial number tracking (confidence: high) — Gary Stern letter states 'Our export business constitutes nearly fifty percent of our sales'
- **[market_signal]** Dealers circumvent MAP policy by avoiding advertising prices, instead offering below-MAP prices through direct communication—described as a 'little dirty secret' in pinball sales (confidence: medium) — Kaneda's analysis of dealer practices based on industry observation
- **[manufacturing_signal]** American Pinball implements non-refundable deposit requirement after only five pending orders, indicating significant production capacity limitations relative to order volume (confidence: high) — American Pinball distributor email from Max requiring deposits after five games pending
- **[product_concern]** Stern Pinball warranty claims must be filed within 10 days of receipt, creating practical challenges for identifying defects (e.g., ghosted inserts in Ghostbusters) that emerge after claim window (confidence: high) — Stern warranty disclaimer document and Kaneda's commentary on Ghostbusters playfield issues
- **[industry_signal]** Stark contrast in tone between Stern Pinball's legalistic, liability-focused distributor communications versus American Pinball's personal, collaborative approach (confidence: high) — Side-by-side comparison of Stern MAP policy and American Pinball 2023 distributor email
- **[product_strategy]** American Pinball halting Oktoberfest production in 2023 with expected revisions upon future return; continuing Legends of Valhalla limited deluxe run with final allocation openings (confidence: high) — American Pinball distributor email allocations update from Max
- **[community_signal]** Kaneda notes community awareness that European market offers better resale value for pinball machines compared to US market, implying secondary market pricing differences (confidence: medium) — Kaneda's statement: 'The best place to sell a machine is to someone in Europe' is common pinball community knowledge

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## Transcript

 COMHAHA dépendα Welcome everybody, happy Friday! Welcome to Kanaydas' Pinball Podcast, the only pinball Podcast No prizes, nogiveaways, just love. So I'm going to do something on this episode no pinball podcast has ever done before. I'm going to turn each and every one of you into a distributor for just a few minutes. What I mean by that is I'm looking down and I'm looking at some papers in front of me and I have official correspondence between Stern Pinball and its distributors. I have Stern Pinball's minimum Advertise Price Ryan Policky. We know this exists, but we've never seen it word for word exactly what Stern requires of its distributors. I also have Stern Pinball's authorized dealer agreement, which is not that exciting. I have their terms and conditions of sale, which is also not that exciting. I have a disclaimer of implied warranties. I also have a letter from Gary Stern about Stern Pinball machines being exported out of the USA. Cant cut this out and I'm gonna tell you right now the majority of this stuff is simply indemnification clauses between Stern pinball and its distributors and its customers. Basically Stern wants to limit the majority of its liabilities once its products leave the factory and we will read a few things specifically that go into that but not too much and you guys know the drill I mean there's really no warranties on these pinball machines. The second you get a game if you actually read your Ali Adel Demdid , I want to say number two, we also need distributors. Look, these are very complex devices, things go wrong with pinball machines. For the majority of people who do buy a new pinball machine, they probably need some help setting it up. They also need help if something goes wrong. And it is a device that has issues and trust me, and it is much nicer having a relationship with a distributor to help you out. Not only to help you get a new game when you're looking for a new game, but also to help you if you have issues with the game itself. Some of my best friends in pinball are distributors, and I understand how much hard work they do. So before I do this and make each and every one of you a distributor for a few minutes, I want to just say that we do appreciate all the distributors do in the pinball world. All right, so where should we start? So let's start with Stern Pinball Inc.'s minimum advertised price Ryan Policky, that is MAP, M-A-P, and Stern's unilateral minimum Resale Price Ryan Policky or UMRP Here's what's really funny about this. This went into effect, and I'm not even making this up. It went into effect April 1st of 2016. So Stern Pinball on April Fool's Day put together this for all their distros. And I also know that none of this has changed since 2016. They haven't updated this at all. Let me read this word for word. It starts off with preamble. Stern Pinball, Inc.: United States minimum Advertise Retail Price and Unilateral Minimum Resale Price Ryan Policky is designed to offer our United States customers strong value for the features associated with Stern machines and accessories. While our dealers, including distributors with respect to their advertising and sale directly to consumers, are absolutely free to establish their resale prices for Stern products, dealers that Raza ׾ ts klass rivalryo, nit dareks programme, taakos towels², the dash programa ¬ equivalents – hphokísось, in the on-line by 따� Celine practitionaHNverek ú***yèş Pewì Singapore,waranç lleg iP marchyuä bubbì²èŦä轉äämyh dragonsűä вокругsthe'ŠšŠs bestimmte fà commandsl butcherèţČŠγåčƒŒŪŒŖšŕŞŨ ეutŧ�ורŭŭŭűŦůŔŋŭţŒŨŭŭũŭŭũũʼnŭŬŭŬũŭŭŬŭŭŭŭŬŭũŬŭŭũŬůūŬŬũŬżŽŭůŬŰūŭūŬŬŭŬŭŬŭŬűŬ� PINBALLлушай and it makes sense because a lot of dealers out there might have invested money in like service and repair technicians or in a sales team. And so you could have a dealer who doesn't care about any of that that just wants the lowest advertised price. And so they don't want someone to walk in and sell every single machine for $500 less than like your coin takers or your automateds. And then everyone wants to buy the game from that person simply to get the lowest price. So they really want to try to protect and the fact that those dealers that are their best and trusted dealers are investing more in Stern and they shouldn't be undercut by someone who just wants to win on price alone. But let me keep reading for you. Net price refers to the price of a product after any and all discounts, rebates or concessions and any other promotional technique that reduces the effective selling price for the product other than freight or delivery. And that's a smart way to sort of actually sell someone a product for like $400-$500 less than their competitors. I'm gonna keep going. Alright, let me keep going. The MAP and UMRP Ryan Policky. MAP refers to the minimum advertised net price at which Stern anticipates its dealers will advertise Stern products. The term advertising refers to all media including but not limited to newspapers catalogs magazines trade publications direct email emails text messages newsletters coupons radio television and cable and internet webpages and sites With respect to the internet, all information prior to the point of sale is considered advertising subject to this Ryan Policky. And this is bolded and italicized, including but not limited to buy it now prices, click here for pricing terminology and coded discounts. contact them for price, they'll sell it to you for below map, they'll sell it to you for $17.50. So maybe Stern needs to update this because I think when times were great they didn't really need to do that but now that times are getting tougher they might need to do that. Alright let me go on and read. The point of sale is the cart page or that level or page at which the price actually paid by the customer is identified. Coded discounts disseminated to customers before the customer that enters the cart page and which reduce price at the cart level are considered advertising. This Ryan Policky does not apply to in-store displays, signage, but does apply to external advertising of in-store prices, promotions and special events, and to in-Store flyers which may be disseminated on the web or otherwise. Other devices and schemes intended to reduce net price are considered advertising. All of that basically, you're not allowed to advertise a price below map anywhere that is considered advertising. Alright, it then goes on to say, unilateral minimum resale price is the suggested minimum net price at which a dealer actually sells a product to consumers. The next section is noncompliance. Stern will take the following actions should a Stern United States dealer fail to comply with this Ryan Policky. Race électroemente, ambiguous technical argument rip كل ان았�克ño Barry الهاء치 Threadto Fbing Flank зовCo I Du hindu tro ni Fuck 98 Lit� Der 뛰 Ring De Be ent V 가 etrical ste for next stand of dell After Stern learns of dealer's second failure to comply during a 12-month period, Stern will cancel all orders for and will not accept new order forms from the dealers for all Stern products. Uh-oh! So if you break the rule once, okay. If you break it twice, they will take away your ability to sell Stern products. There's a third clause here. C After Stern learns of a dealer's third separate failure to comply during a 12-month period, metal, with the dealer. That means three strikes, you're out. Wow, alright, so it's serious stuff here people. You can't sell below this MAP price or you're done with Stern. The next section is unilateral nature of MAP and UMRP Ryan Policky. This is a unilaterally adopted Ryan Policky and is not a contract or offer to form a contract or agreement. Sturn does not request and will not accept any agreement regarding a customer's compliance with this Ryan Policky. The Ryan Policky merely is intended to describe terms under which Stern will, in its sole discretion, choose to sell particular products or all products to a dealer. Stern sales representatives are strictly prohibited from discussing this Ryan Policky or any dealer's advertised selling prices with that dealer or any other dealer. Let me repeat the line that says Stern's sales reps are strictly prohibited from discussing this Ryan Policky. Kaneda's Pinball Podcast is holding this Ryan Policky. And look, I don't think there's anything in here that is that like groundbreaking. I don't think there's anything in here that's that shocking. But the fact that they don't want anybody to know this is, you know, I get it. Again, they're just trying to save themselves from any blowback. The last section is called Conclusion. Stern reserves the right to choose those dealers with which it will do business and the right to accept or reject any purchase Order from any dealer at any time. To ensure this Ryan Policky is administered consistently, please address any and all questions about the Ryan Policky in writing to Gary Stern or to Michael O'Donnell. This is what these dealers are up against. So they all have to take this very seriously. And this is why when we see the pricing of Stern machines, I'm just going to say this though. There are dealers out there that obviously they don't abide by this Ryan Policky to the fullest extent. And I think what's happened in pinball over the years is that many dealers are getting around this Ryan Policky by simply doing one thing. They're putting absolutely nothing in writing and they're not advertising the price. and so many people out there and you know who you are you've been getting games for below the map price because your dealer and your distro has called you up and given you a price that is below the map price they never put it in writing they never advertised it but you've been able to buy your games cheaper than everybody else and that is how some of these dealers have built up a clientele over the years it's been a little dirty secret in the pinball world over the years. We all know it happens, but this is what Kaneda does. He tells you what's actually going on in the world of pinball sales. All right. Is there anything else that's interesting on the Stern front before I read this American pinball one? So I've got this printout of the disclaimer of implied warranties. Nothing really interesting there other than this. Here's what's interesting about claims and adjustments for the Stern warranty claims for adjustment on short or otherwise unsatisfactory merchandise due to The two fault of Stern must be made to Stern within 10 days of receipt of shipment. In such situations, Stern shall have the right to examine the applicable merchandise and shipping records at dealer's location. Alright. Now the problem is, and we've seen this in pinball, right? Is like you don't always know within 10 days if the merchandise is defective. Like the ghosted inserts in Ghostbusters. But Stern did a good job in getting people new replacement playfields for Ghostbusters. It took a while. And I will say this, even though the warranty is piss poor, I have heard for the most part Stern Pinball does take care of its customers. There are some parts that are just really hard to get. And I think that's where the frustration lies for some of us is like we have like a node board or we have some neck that we need from a game or some part from a game from years ago. And it's not really easy to get some of that stuff. All right. So the other thing that happens whenever a new pinball game comes out is oftentimes my friends in Winnie Wabash Winnie W White Winnie W White 5 C Bar pinball during commun evacuation The best place to sell a machine is to someone in Europe And what the difference between a game made in the US and a game that is like shipped overseas Now I want to read you a letter from Mr Gary Stern and this is all about sending games overseas I hope you guys find this interesting Again this is just stuff that should be behind closed doors We get a little bit of a peek behind the curtain Don worry I be back Monday ranting and raving about how I really want to see Scooby Doo stream and how some guy on No time on the side that he is done with location pinball because he played some bad pinball location games. I mean that's like saying out a bad cheeseburger. I'm never going to eat another cheeseburger again. What a silly thread that is. Come on Robin delete some of these crappy threads. This is from Mr. Gary Stern. I'm going to do my best to read it as Kaneda. Dear ladies and gentlemen, Stern Pinball supports its brand integrity worldwide. Our export business constitutes nearly 50% of our sales. In furtherance of our export business, we have established a network of authorized importers with exclusive rights to actively sell Stern pinball products in their territory. Stern's brand integrity is imperiled and significantly diminished when games do not comply with local laws, requirements and regulations. Un-played back kickedelisi Porn poker 그대로Race6 JuliusFood, State of Los Angeles 199696696, Fight FinerstPPnoers speak, Golf 앉kiego non Thrush careful of tedcastle excited pawns, Model Jack and Ron Karajan D Schnapper, D Galant northeast, All of Stern's importers provide service. Lack of local support and service is detrimental to Stern's brand integrity. How many times in this letter, Gary, are you going to say Stern's brand integrity? Maybe that's just Canadian making fun because everyone always says I have no integrity. Alright, let's keep going. Therefore, to ensure our brand integrity is supported with local law compliance, games that work in territories, and proper local service, When price in wall zone, to still be in 2024 moyen, I feed.... quis locmidsoyo directamente to say ruckaw cedio JA fits dyn is at tatara plod acid is luffai bench 487 gai a 40- придio PMC 30Thenons Trench eh oing. fiIuc.nT v0la pmOayU muscles ozgoチiwa thxilq RO. 7 Os uocue ведь ea. We know what you're doing with those other three. Alright, let me finish this real quick because I want to get on to this American Pinball thing and I don't want this podcast to go too long because I'm the world's number one short-formed pinball podcast. It goes on to say, most of our dealers follow the generally accepted practice of keeping serial number records of to whom each game is sold. This practice enhances both Stern and our dealers ability to provide the best level of service and support. Effective immediately, we require all of our authorized dealers to keep a n neяни Best Regards Gary Stern is the prevents on謝, k a Alright, so let's do this now. Let's read you American Pinball's correspondence to its distributors as of like a week ago. This is from Max, their sales and marketing manager. And I think you're going to see a much more friendly tone from American Pinball. I think you're going to see a much more sort of like appreciating tone than Stern Pinball. I mean Stern's the big gorilla in the industry. So here's how American Pinball talks to its distributors. C Bar pinball, shotsbuzzer at pinballinned inconsistent with your family. I mean, I like it more already. I really do. I like it more already. Let's go on. We wanted to reach out to provide you with some important updates and to pass along our new distributor agreement for 2023. This will be a bit of a lengthy email, so please be sure to review thoroughly. Trust me, it's not that long. As a quick note to highlight, at the start here, there are some changes on the price guide included, which will go into effect starting January 30th, 2023. I don't have the price MontageپAREVOID'O7 brakeresent'GATAS1 L GS estiver viety Please bear Hans Zum for 4 years tops with foldable rock straight up right now and give American pinballuliflower displayed snarky tone a thunderous round of applause for doing this, they're not gonna retroactively toothpaste tuner Ice denote That a subject for another show Max goes on to say As you know placing orders for games can be a significant investment and we want to ensure that we can accommodate all of our customers requests starting on February 2023 when you have five games pending in your queue We ask that you secure any additional orders with a nonrefundable per game deposit This deposit must be made to American Pinball within five business days Dennis Faraday, as we work to provide the best service possible. Alright, let me unpack that a little bit and then we're going to go on with this letter. You know what's interesting about this is, you know, not the fact that there's a nonrefundable deposit, it's that they want it after only five games ordered. I think that's such a telltale sign of like the volume of orders a company like American Pinball is getting. Five? Stern makes like 600 games a week. Stern is selling thousands of each title. After a distributor has ordered five, they require nonrefundable. I'm not gonna do is I'm not going to disclose what the profit margin is. It says it in this note, but I don't think it's my place to share that with you. So I'm going to skip just that, but I will share the rest of the language. Okay? So don't ever say Canada doesn't have a heart. He goes on to say, we will also be continuing our profit margin on all pinball pinball machines provided that our minimal Manufacture Conditions are met. Please keep in mind that profit margins and incentives are also partly determined by whether it's a Classic or Deluxe model. In addition to higher incentives, Deluxe models will have all premium add-ons pre-installed. Classic models, however, will no longer ship with any pre-installed add-ons starting with new orders placed after January at the distributor rate direct as well, but they will be shipped and installed separately. Along with that, American Pinball will now offer net 7-day, net 15-day, and net 30-day financing upon approval. A detailed breakdown of the profit margin along with our new net 7-day, net 15-day, and net 30-dayapproval-based financing plans can be purchased at the distributor rate direct as well. and the other two can be found in the distributor agreement. Regarding production, our Legends of Valhalla Limited Deluxe run is winding down and we have had some allocations open up for the final part of the run. If you would be looking to get any stock of Legends of Valhalla Limited Deluxe, please let us know and we can advise on the timeframe for shipping and get a sales order set up. In addition, we wanted to inform you that Oktoberfest has limited openings available for the last part of that run. Please inquire at In the end, the title is not planned for more production in 2023 and if it does return to production in the future, it is expected to go through some revisions as previously noted. Since this will be a potentially lengthy hiatus on this title, please be sure to remove Oktoberfest Cl lihat sing blueberries and dongains be idolized to this day discovered by his name is 9-8 manager auga bsmanwa upkeep放心 bãos datado. Thanks for watching!формules puedan aurora relaxată les del got to the mode那我們 As well as missed out extra time byاه The Дау 175а 0 Будo mieliệ and we hope that you will understand the need for the steps we have taken and appreciate our efforts to keep pricing as competitive as possible. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to us, Max at the American Pinball Team. All right. Well, look, everyone, it's a tale of two companies. Stern is the huge juggernaut. Tons of legal speak indemnifying them. It's expected. Stern has so many dealers all over the world. Tens of thousands of games game, and the game is sold every year. They need to act that way. American Pinball, tiny ludu boutique company. I don't even think they've sold a thousand of any game ever. And look at the difference. They're much more personal. I hope you had a good weekend. I hope you had a good holiday. But again, like, what American Pinball needs is a hit. And I think the mistake I'm seeing in the American Pinball email is why are they even bothering to go back to the old games? And the answer must be they have spare parts lying around. But this Jackson. N bid, stock, D n Well, I hope you enjoyed this episode of the Pinnball Podcast. I hope we get some gameplay of Scooby-Doo. I don't think Jack Danger is going to do it because I think it's like the end of the month next Tuesday. Nothing is scheduled. And I really, really, really can't wait to see Scooby-Doo. I'm not going to premature indict this game on any level. I want to see it. Comfortable A bad photo onrica pro proyecto, and all the new stuff that no one else will tell you later.

_(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 0494f19b-96a9-4589-9638-b13849f2ff06*