Possible DDI Tiered Pricing...

I'm A Banana · Feb 17, 2011

Go to D&D's main page.

Check out the D&D Insider Toolbox to the right.

Now check the colors of the little dragons around the borders of the icons.

No border (name gemerator, character sheets)
Bronze border (compendium)
Silver border (character builder, dungeon, dragon)
Gold border (Adventure Tools AKA Monster Builder)

...anyone else think this might be the idea they're working with for tiered pricing? Free tools, then bronze/silver/gold membership (or maybe since it's D&D, copper, silver, gold)?

If so, what would you think? Think the DM tools are going to be all Gold-level? Are the mags worth any more than the minimum access price? Should the Character Builder be free?

Let's say the price we're paying now is the "bronze" level...would you pay more for the CharBuilder or the mags? How about the adventure tools?

This is theoretical only -- all I have to go on are the border colors, and they might not even be the plan. But it gives us the first hint that they might be thinking about charging different amounts for access to different tools, and, especially, possibly charging DMs more than players. Otherwise, I'm not sure why they'd have different border schemes....

Dice4Hire · Feb 17, 2011

Yes, that seems likely to me, also. And, based on what I see, that is how I would divide things up also.

Putting the compendium at the lowest tier is a good idea.

Would like to see how the VTT would fit there, but I know it is still in early beta. I would put it at the compendium level, personally.

BobTheNob · Feb 17, 2011

As long as pricing for the "Gold" package is what we are paying at the moment, I think its a great idea.

If they make me start paying more for what I already get though...

Nemesis Destiny · Feb 17, 2011

Haven't those borders always been there in those colours?

mudbunny · Feb 17, 2011

Interesting. I never really paid much attention to that at all, so I don't know if it has always been like that.

who is in the WotC offices tomorrow that I can poke.

Dannager · Feb 17, 2011

...how in the world did we miss this for so long?

With all the constant speculation and analysis this community does, it's only now that one of us spots this particular oddity?

If it turns out to have merit, I think this is a pretty great pricing structure. The Compendium being at the lowest tier is fantastic, useful for players and DMs alike, and as far as I'm concerned indispensable.

I'm A Banana · Feb 17, 2011

As long as pricing for the "Gold" package is what we are paying at the moment, I think its a great idea.

If they make me start paying more for what I already get though..

It would be fabulous if we were already paying for the gold package!

The cynic in me doesn't want to bet on that, though.

My most "educated guess" is that we're paying for the Silver. There'd be a "lesser" version (compendium only) and a "greater" version that contains stuff that they're currently working on (Adventure Tools, Virtual Tabletop?, whatever else they've got in the pipeline). I'd imagine maybe a ~$2-$5 price difference, though that's just sort of a number I pulled out of the aether.

I would love to be wrong about this, though! I don't want to have to pay more for a monster builder!

Dannager · Feb 17, 2011

Kamikaze Midget said:
It would be fabulous if we were already paying for the gold package!

The cynic in me doesn't want to bet on that, though.

My most "educated guess" is that we're paying for the Silver. There'd be a "lesser" version (compendium only) and a "greater" version that contains stuff that they're currently working on (Adventure Tools, Virtual Tabletop?, whatever else they've got in the pipeline). I'd imagine maybe a ~$2-$5 price difference, though that's just sort of a number I pulled out of the aether.

I would love to be wrong about this, though! I don't want to have to pay more for a monster builder!

We may see the VTT integrated into this pricing structure somehow, likely at the silver or gold levels.

I'm really intrigued by how the VTT will be priced, or will affect DDI pricing. It might be rolled into a subscription, or will be subscription-based and include a set number of "tickets" per month to hand out to players, or it might be entirely ticket-based, or it might be on its own nominal subscription. I think all of these have their own merits, and it'll be interesting to see which they end up going with.

Nemesis Destiny · Feb 17, 2011

If there turns out to be a tier structure, and it is priced even higher than what we're paying now, they'd better have a damned convincing carrot to make folks pony up more than we already do.

As it is, the value of the subscription has been steadily dropping since late last summer.

Sonny · Feb 17, 2011

Kamikaze Midget said:
It would be fabulous if we were already paying for the gold package!

The cynic in me doesn't want to bet on that, though.

My most "educated guess" is that we're paying for the Silver. There'd be a "lesser" version (compendium only) and a "greater" version that contains stuff that they're currently working on (Adventure Tools, Virtual Tabletop?, whatever else they've got in the pipeline). I'd imagine maybe a ~$2-$5 price difference, though that's just sort of a number I pulled out of the aether.

I would love to be wrong about this, though! I don't want to have to pay more for a monster builder!

Considering how may people have given up on DDI at the current price and feature set, they'd be pushing it to move some of the current features to a more expensive tier. Especially since they've already reduced the content of Dragon and Dungeon magazines.

They have every right to charge more of course. But, given how much of a beating they've taken in the last year on both sales and reputation, they really shouldn't do something that's going to hurt their current efforts to generate good will within the community.

I guess we'll see.

Possible DDI Tiered Pricing...

I'm A Banana

Potassium-Rich

Dice4Hire

First Post

BobTheNob

First Post

Nemesis Destiny

Adventurer

mudbunny

Community Supporter

Dannager

First Post

I'm A Banana

Potassium-Rich

Dannager

First Post

Nemesis Destiny

Adventurer

Sonny

Adventurer

Similar Threads