on 24/8/01 5:09 pm, Heather Williams at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> Just so everyone gets this clear: the Standard single user license unlocks one
> edition of Revolution, currently 1.0. This license will not unlock any future
> updates, but is not time limited in any way. You can carry on using that
> version of Revolution for as long as you can run it on your computer. [snip]
> If you are a Standard license holder, and you want features appearing in a
> later update, you need to purchase that update as another Standard license.
on 29/8/01 2:59 pm, Kevin Miller at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> Just to clarify this matter, purchasing updates to a Standard license *does*
> fit into this definition - i.e. you do *not* have to purchase the license
> again, there is a reduced price update path which has as yet not been
> determined or published. There is no change in policy.
These two messages are I think inconsistent. Can we just definitively
clarify:
- will the purchaser of a Standard license for version X be able
to update to a Standard license of version Y for less than
the full cost of a Standard license of version Y, where Y = X + 1?
I hope the answer is Yes!
I believe that both supplier and customer benefit from most users keeping up
to date with the latest version. It seems to me perfectly consistent to say
that a Standard license will be $300; tech support optional extra $xx;
update Standard license from the previous version to the current one eg
$100-$200; annual subscription (all updates for the next year) $300. Giving
the purchaser of a Standard license no discount to update to the next
version (and not even permitting them to get a subscription during the first
year) is unhelpful, and just seems 'unfair' - and people don't like that.
It's also likely to lead to delayed purchasing decisions - why buy 1.0 now,
if 1.1 will be out soon and I'd throw away _all_ the cost of 1.0?
I think this does require some close attention to what the 'Pro' package
represents and costs. RealBasic (I'm sorry to keep mentioning RB, but it is
the most immediately obvious comparison - apart from MetaCard) makes the
distinction by functionality - from memory the Standard version is Mac only,
the Pro version adds compilation for Windows, and some additional DB
functionality. That makes sense, because the DB functionality will mostly
useful to 'professional' users (and the IDE is Mac only anyway).
CodeWarrior makes the distinction mainly in terms of supported platforms
(Pro version adds ability to compile for PlayStation, Palm, embedded
devices). Obviously Rev's ability to make similar distinctions is
constrained by the technical relationship with MetaCard (as, I'd imagine,
RunRev's flexibility in pricing is constrained by the business relationship
with MetaCorp), but it might be worth thinking about what could be done in
this direction (eg the new database externals might be rolled into the Pro
license).
As users, our interest is not simply to persuade RunRev to drop the price,
but to get it right. People have mentioned stability in the course of this
pricing discussion. It's worth remembering that a key aspect of stability
is ensuring that RunRev have sufficient revenue stream from Rev to continue
developing and supporting the product. One of the first questions my
managing director asked me when I was telling him about this new product
that I was evaluating, and planning to spend some money on, was "sounds
good; what are the chances that these guys will be able to bring it to
market before going bust?" Well, they did! More recently, when I proposed
to buy some additional licenses, the question was "how confident are we that
the company will be able to stay in busines and keep supporting the
product?"
> Greetings from holiday in Sydney,
And greetings back from holiday in France... Geoff, you still in Mexico?
Ben Rubinstein | Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Cognitive Applications Ltd | Phone: +44 (0)1273-821600
http://www.cogapp.com | Fax : +44 (0)1273-728866
