Quote:Technically it still cannot be considered "Version A, B & C" we're talking about. It's nothing close to milking. 8cm/12cm were two formats so it was only normal for EMI to release both at the times. Releasing a DVD with a PV =/= version B of a single, they were different things and they charted differently (8cm and 12cm cds weren't charting as one thing, too). Now as the times were changing and DVD getting cheaper DVD was added as a bonus to a single but for those who couldn't afford it CD only version was available. From what you said only PoL was released in CD+DVD format only and as I said before they did almost everything for the release to be worth buying for a casual fan.
I have no problem with two version of a single/album when the only difference one has PVs and the other doesn't - why pay for something you don't need? I also understand costly "fan only special limited and expensive" version for fans. But I consider milking when a release follows more or less this schema:
1.Three versions or more
2.To have all the songs that come with the release you need buy all of them
3. If there are more that one PV each of them is in a different version
4. Different covers for the release - not as much as previous points but it makes a collector buy something twice only for a face value.

I reallly wonder. For the label SM Entertainment, only boy bands have albums released in triple versions (Versions A, B, and C):

- TVXQ (O Jung Ban Hap and Mirotic)
- Super Junior (Sorry Sorry and Bonamana)
- SHINee (The Shinee World and Lucifer)

Versions A and B are of the same tracks but different packaging while version C is the repackaed version with extra new tracks. I wonder why SM is doing this (I think it's because of low physical sales in Korea - 2007 was the worst physical sales declination in Korea, and the highest selling Korean album of 2007 never reached 200,000 copies).