weidehou

1. past: products under brand name were superior->premium prices2. now: technical expertise becomes widespread->no premium quality or price for products under brand names
(Naturally, the value of brand names go down)
Paradoxically, brand names are bigger marketing advantage
解释型题目，即加强paradoxically的部分
A: products under brand names >= best rival products (best non-branded products), meaning brand names still work as a competitive advantage, not losing their value, even all products (branded, non-branded) are the same in quality and price. In the past, brands might make money from charging premium on the products; now they still can make money buy selling more because of the brand effect mentioned in choice A.
B: "drift"  makes this choice weaken the brand effect a little.
C: this comparison is irrelevant, even if the claim stands, it makes no support for the brand effect.
D: we are looking for something supporting a claim about the current situation, discussion about the past doesn't help at all
E: totally irrelevant.