"They bought the ability to sell Lexar-branded memory". Michael Sadler, Micron's vice president for worldwide sales, largely agreed.
You are buying the ability to switch to a different manufacturer if your current supplier stops innovating or goes bust, and the reliable expectation that you will be able to buy an improved product in the future.
He argues, however, that the contracts the club signed under the previous management were in breach of the Fifa regulations, which prohibit third parties from buying "the ability to influence" clubs' team selections or transfers.
For example, when you buy a Windows PC, you are also buying the ability to use thousands of peripherals, hundreds of thousands of applications, plus all the Windows magazines, books, YouTube videos, websites and allied services from educational courses to repair shops.
In one fast, quick step Facebook bought the ability to easily and effectively provide mobile image solutions - across any application - to millions of existing users.
That's not actually buying a list of emails, which would be spammy, but buying the ability to get your book in front of people who've opted in for such promotions.
Here's what Alibaba bought: the ability to turn any image, logo, profile picture, animation, or even video into an engaging visual code that connects consumers and brands seamlessly.
Appreciate that you will be buying the ability of the business to produce cash.
In stores, the distance between the decision to buy and the ability to buy is really just the checkout line.
(Letterpress is free, but 99¢ will buy you the ability to play multiple games at once).
