On those tricky manufacturer rebates

Manufacturer rebates are offered for several reasons, including 1) It allows companies to offer a short-term discount without effecting the long-term price of the product, 2) It allows companies to hold onto the discount dollars (and invest or collect interest on them) for a month or two until the rebate is issued, and 3) It leaves open the possibility that consumers will fail to send in the rebate forms and never collect the discount (though of course it still factors in their purchase decision).

As the recent beneficiary of a large rebate, I've observed it's even more tricky than that.