If this isn't consumer power how would you call it?

The Econmist reports about a powerful phenomenon right now in China : Tuangou, or team buying. " It aims to drive unprecedented bargains by combining the reach of the internet with the power of the mob. It is spreading through China like wildfire. The practice originated in online chat-rooms but has quickly inspired several specialist websites, such as 51tuangou.com and www.teambuy.com.cn. Zhang Wei, who helped to set up teambuy less than six months ago, says the site has 10,000 registered members. The company plans to expand into Beijing and Shanghai."

Read also this post of Sam Flemming
And this one

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Consumer power

Shop affronts

Chinese consumers are ganging up on their retailers

ON
AN otherwise quiet Friday afternoon in Guangzhou, a city in southern
China, 500 shoppers gather outside a Gome electrical superstore in the
downtown district. They arrive en masse at the designated time—June
16th at 4pm—that they had previously agreed online. Several hours
later, they emerge clutching boxes, having secured 10-30% discounts on
cameras, DVD players and flat-screen
televisions. “It was great,” says Fairy Zhang. “We just bought an
apartment and this way we can afford nice things for it.” The previous
weekend, over 100 locals visited Meizhu Central, a well known furniture
outlet, to haggle over the prices of kitchen cabinets and dining-room
furniture.

Tuangou, or team buying, aims to drive unprecedented bargains by combining the reach of the internet with the power of the mob. It is spreading through China like wildfire. The practice originated in online chat-rooms but has quickly inspired several specialist websites, such as 51tuangou.com and www.teambuy.com.cn. Zhang Wei, who helped to set up teambuy less than six months ago, says the site has 10,000 registered members. The company plans to expand into Beijing and Shanghai.

The first team buyers found each other by accident as they chatted online about buying everything from electronics to cars and even apartments—and realised they could get a better price if they went shopping together. (...)