CMP: On its way out?

[iwarrior-poet]

My prediction---CMP will not be around within six months. Why you ask? Here's a few reasons:
1. No substantive update on their web page for close to two months now.
2. No apparent revenue stream---i.e. No current Chargen product, their much awaited vaporware RPGFoundry is now two years past due with not even a hint of a release date.
3. They are only selling PCGen datasets from non WoTC publishers---I am guessing that brings in about $.02/month.
4. They seem to be plagued by Webserver issues...
5. Their "We are hard at work, just you wait and see!!!" attitude wore thin about 18 months ago (particularly when one of their primary contractors is admitting to being mostly busy with dayjob and education commitments---may be true but does little to inspire customer loyalty and interest...)
6. WoTC is allegedly poised to begin production on its own web-based Chargen/Campaign manager software---a good likelihood that most consumers will wait for this product before purchasing virtually anything else

I am not so sure about other for-profit Chargens like DMGenie and Hero builder (at least they have current products), but I am sure they will take a big hit from WoTC's impending monster.

This (oddly enough) plays squarely into PCGen's hands. Since they are free they will certainly stay around----now if they would only create a gui based tool that would allow for creation of Prestige Classes and Feats...And not run sooooo sloooowwwllyyy
but I have already addressed that elsewhere...

(edited to address Barak's post)

 

[Thaniel]

To be fair, there has never been a deadline for RPGFoundry. They have never set one, therefore how can they be 2 years late?

 

[iwarrior-poet]

To be fair, there has never been a deadline for RPGFoundry. They have never set one, therefore how can they be 2 years late?

Yea, CMP has been known for their "We never really promised you anything." stance---and then using levity to lighten any potential response.
That being said, they had several previous 'estimated release dates' that were powerfully blown past. So many, in fact, that I don't think they will ever use one again. They also reneged on the dataset trade-in for RPGFoundry. I blame that one mostly on WoTC (when they didn't renew CMP's license to produce datasets)---but one of the maxims in biz is, "Don't make promises you cannot keep."

 

[kingpaul]

but one of the maxims in biz is, "Don't make promises you cannot keep."

And, from their posts, they had buy-in from WotC at the time they made the initial offer. The buy-in disappeared.

 

[iwarrior-poet]

Bottom line: Don't make a promise you can't keep.

They should have either bound up the dataset exchange in their initial contract (allowing them to do trade in PCGen/E-Tools datasets), with some sort of condition/clause that allowed them to make good on their promise---or they should have produced RPGFoundry before the end of their contract so that they could have done the exchange.

 

[2WS-Steve]

Have to say that I'm not sure we'll ever see RPG Foundry.

Every week I check to see if there are any updates and every week there's some excuse as to why there aren't any updates. When you're saying that there's no update because one of the bosses' computer went down, and that goes on for a couple weeks, we know there's some other reason. If you're involved in computers, you'll find some other way to check and respond to email.

 

[2WS-Steve]

And, from their posts, they had buy-in from WotC at the time they made the initial offer. The buy-in disappeared.

If that's true then both WotC and CMP would be vulnerable to a class-action lawsuit when RPG Foundry comes out.

 

[iwarrior-poet]

If that's true then both WotC and CMP would be vulnerable to a class-action lawsuit when RPG Foundry comes out.

Now there's a thought...

 

[BarakO]

(particularly when one of their founders is admitting to being mostly busy with dayjob and education commitments---may be true but does little to inspire customer loyalty and interest...)

Erm... Please get your facts straight.

I'm not a founder, I'm a contractor for CMP (granted I have been with them from the beginning), and *I'm* the one that has become busy with school and other work (note I've always had other work, I just decided to go back to school for a second degree recently -- well, a year ago).

And I posted that notice so people would be aware that (as bug-stomper for the data) there might be a bit of a lag between a report and it's being acknowledged and/or fixed. It is in no way an indication of anything relating to the status of RPGF *or* CMP.

 

[iwarrior-poet]

OK, I'll edit my post. Care to respond to any of the other points raised? I just realized that a class action suit would only bring about my prediction... ah well...