D&D Beyond Cancellations Changed WotCs Plans

Gizmodo has revealed that the partial OGL v1.1 walkback yesterday was in response to the fan campaign to cancel D&D Beyond subscriptions, with "five digits" worth of cancellations. However, the site also reveals that management at the company believed that fans were overreating and that it would all be forgotten in a few months.

In order to delete a D&D Beyond account entirely, users are funneled into a support system that asks them to submit tickets to be handled by customer service: Sources from inside Wizards of the Coast confirm that earlier this week there were “five digits” worth of complaining tickets in the system. Both moderation and internal management of the issues have been “a mess,” they said, partially due to the fact that WotC has recently downsized the D&D Beyond support team.

Yesterday's walkback removed the royalties from the license, but still 'de-authorized' the OGL v1.0a, something which may or may not be legally possible, depending on who you ask.

Cancelled D&D Beyond Subscriptions Forced Hasbro's Hand

Swift consumer action prompted Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast to to scrap licensing updates. The players aren't done yet.

gizmodo.com

 

[guachi]

So glad I was one of them. It was by far the fastest way voice displeasure and it hit them exactly in the one place they look to as their primary future income stream, DDB

EDIT: And saying fans are "overreacting" is classic abuser behavior. First, they said that we didn't win, both sides won. Now they say we are overreacting. Imagine your abusive spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend spoke like that to you. All your friends would be telling to to GET OUT of that relationship.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

So glad I was one of them. It was by far the fastest way voice displeasure and it hit them exactly in the one place they look to as their primary future income stream, DDB

Very true, but I think they will also feel it when it comes time for next major hardcover to release..

 

[GMforPowergamers]

I mean there is nothing I am going to say that will change your mind. Your mind is made up. I believe Hasbro sees D&D as a brand not just a game. I believe it is in a gray area but if the movie and tv show so relatively well that could shift quickly.

DC comics and Marvel Comics don't make 1/5th the revenue that the toys and movies and cartoons do according to insiders. If the game is ONLY the number 1 game close to number 2, and the movie and tv show make bank... I see WotC calling that a win.

 

[GrissTheGnome]

This crap came at such a perfect time. First off after Spelljammer I couldn’t decide if I wanted to get Planescape or not. Also after 3.0 came out I bought all the stuff for 3.5 and then never played it, and I was wondering if that was going to be the case this time around too. As I’ve had a lot of apathy on running D&D of late. I’m not going to say anything for sure cuz I guess WotC could try and earn back my trust in the next year or so, but as things stand right now, I’ll spend my gaming money elsewhere.

Edit - I also feel the same about the D&D movie, which isn’t saying much I’ve been waiting for streaming on everything lately anyway. But I went to see the original movie in the theaters because of blind nerd loyalty and I was wondering if I should do the same. But again now it’s like naw, I’ll wait for streaming.

 

[Scribe]

I see WotC calling that a win.

WotC called the customer outrage a win. I'm pretty sure they will call anything a win at this point.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

WotC called the customer outrage a win. I'm pretty sure they will call anything a win at this point.

yeah if you cut out what I said was a win you can gett a cheap laugh... the win is in making the brand more recognizable and more bankable.

 

[Quickleaf]

5 Digits in American english is tens of thousands 1,2,3,4,5 digits

Yes, five digits is more than you can count on one hand with 5 digits attached to it, if that helps @MockingBird

I submitted a ticket yesterday to have my D&D Beyond account deleted. But it has been a free account for the last two years, so not sure how that factors into the community's pushback.

 

[guachi]

DC comics and Marvel Comics don't make 1/5th the revenue that the toys and movies and cartoons do according to insiders. If the game is ONLY the number 1 game close to number 2, and the movie and tv show make bank... I see WotC calling that a win.

This is what I find baffling about deauthorizing OGL 1.0a. As long as OGL 1.0a is in effect D&D is what 3pp make supplements for. It largely strangles competitors. It ensures Roleplaying=D&D. Hasbro should consider that a HUGE win.

License the snot out of D&D. Movies, action figures, Lego sets, t-shirts, TV shows. Hasbro believes deauthorizing the OGL is how they strangle competition. I think they are wrong. It's by keeping OGL 1.0a alive that you strangle competing game systems.

 

[GrissTheGnome]

I watched that interview with Ryan Dancey on Battlezoo and he’s right, D&D in and of itself has no value. Rules are meaningless, and the various worlds beyond the deeply intrenched lore nerds are meaningless. It’s so meaningless that in the new D&D movie it doesn’t look like any character is a lore character at all. Like is Elminster or one of the Seven Sisters even in it? It’s actually smart because people don’t know about any of that, people know the name Dungeons and Dragons.

The value of the brand is the people playing it and the more people playing it the more valuable it is. Ryan described it like a telephone, the more people have it the more value your telephone has. And that honestly is the tragedy in all this WotC thinks that D&D is the brand, and what they did was fracture the fan base possibly back into all the teny-tiny shards it was in pre-OGL… and that means that the RPG death spiral of the late 90’s could easily come back. I hope not, but I see history repeating itself and it’s just awful.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

This is what I find baffling about deauthorizing OGL 1.0a. As long as OGL 1.0a is in effect D&D is what 3pp make supplements for. It largely strangles competitors. It ensures Roleplaying=D&D. Hasbro should consider that a HUGE win.

License the snot out of D&D. Movies, action figures, Lego sets, t-shirts, TV shows. Hasbro believes deauthorizing the OGL is how they strangle competition. I think they are wrong. It's by keeping OGL 1.0a alive that you strangle competing game systems.

I don't know I would love to see the cost benefit analyses though... cause I can't imagine what the plan is.