Kiwis are paying up to 50 per cent more than American consumers for online distributed files and software, such as films and iPhone apps, once exchange rates are factored in.

Consumer groups say New Zealanders are being ripped off and need to "make more noise" to change the practice.

Telecommunications Users' Association chief executive Paul Brislen said a "huge price discrepancy" existed between what Kiwi consumers and others paid.

Online distribution meant arguments about distribution costs – which were cited as a reason for the higher cost of the All Blacks adidas jersey in New Zealand – became irrelevant.

"New Zealand purchasers are being taken for a ride."

Apple was not the only culprit and local businesses faced the same pricing inequities, Brislen said.

He knew of one business that licensed all of its software, including Microsoft software, through its US subsidiary. "He's saving 30 to 40 per cent off the price of his licences."

Apple recently dropped prices for its apps in Australia, where protests about its pricing practices have even made it to parliament courtesy of crusading Labor politician Ed Husic, Brislen said. "We've got nobody making noise over here – or certainly not at that kind of level – so they're quite happy to rip us off."

Premium pricing and the inavailability of some content were drivers of online piracy, he said.

Consumer NZ technology writer Hadyn Green said New Zealanders were paying too much for digital products. "If a product has a price and there are no added costs like physical distribution then I do not know why we should pay more than someone overseas."

Mario Wynands, chief executive of Wellington games firm Sidhe – which develops games for smartphones and consoles - said iPhone and iPad app developers could choose a US pricing tier for their apps, such as US99c, and Apple had pre-set prices in other territories for that tier.

The pricing was meant to roughly reflect the strength of different currencies versus the US dollar, but the relative volatility of the New Zealand currency meant there was often greater discrepancy between Apple's set price and the US to NZ dollar conversion.

"Apple doesn't want to base all of their pricing off a single currency, if they did the price for apps would be different every day in every other country."

The pricing of physical copies of games could also artificially inflate the price of digitally distributed games, as publishers often imposed limits on how cheap the online version of a game could be to protect their bricks and mortar retail sales.

"Because the physical retail in New Zealand is higher than in the US, you sometimes end up with that digital distribution discrepancy as well."

Sidhe was focused on producing online games which would make it easier to price equitably across territories, Wynands said.

Microsoft corporate affairs manager Waldo Kuipers said prices for digitally delivered products were based on long-term exchange rate trends and risk, and Microsoft was mindful of not undercutting local retailers when pricing online products.

"Also there are some costs of localising even for digital product, for example, customer support requirements and making sure the quality of service is there if it's an online service."

Microsoft sometimes outsourced online sales of digital content to third parties, which set their own prices.

Local online accounting software firm Xero's business packages cost between $29 and $64 a month in New Zealand, while the equivalent packages in the US cost US$19 (about $24) and US$39 (about $50) a month.

Chief executive Rod Drury said its New Zealand packages had more features than others.

"We try to be roughly equal with pricing, but it's hard with exchange rates moving, and also natural pricing theory says you've got to price to the nines, like $19.99 or $29.99.

"We've got differentiated products in each country and, as long as you're providing good value, it's not such a big deal."

Kiwis were "absolutely" getting ripped off by Apple's pricing discrepancies, he said.

Apple declined to comment.

Pretty penny

Kiwis pay up to 50 per cent more for software delivered online than consumers in the US, once the exchange rate is factored in:

Angry Birds Rio for the iPad: $4.19 on the NZ iTunes store, US$2.99 ($3.70) in the US.

Maroon 5's Moves Like Jagger single: $2.39 on the NZ iTunes store, US$1.29 ($1.60) in the US.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: $17.99 on the NZ iTunes store, US$9.99 ($12.40) in the US.

Microsoft Office 365 for professionals and small businesses: $9.25 per user per month in New Zealand, US$6 ($7.45) per user per month in the US.

Microsoft Office and Home Business 2010: $515 in New Zealand, US$279.95 ($347) in the US.

Exchange rate as at Thursday September 22.