D&D Insider - Pay tomorrow for what you get today for free?

[DonTadow]

Although the new D&D Insider subscription has a bunch of stuff that will be inarguably new, is anyone else struck by home much of it is already on the WotC site for free today? Unless they're going to double the amount of product previews, Class Acts and the like, it looks like the day of free content on the Web site (in the name of marketing) may be going bye-bye.

This strikes me as a bad idea, but I guess time will tell ...

It's a marketing plan and a pretty good idea. A lot of websites do this. Most businesses have a plan to make some more most of their website accessible to only paid customers within 5 to 10 years of launch. I've worked for two media companies that have done this. They create a really good and content full site and slowly scale back on it after three years. By the sixth or seventh year there are "premium" subscriptions to important content. You can look at the New York times and espn content for examples.

I'll be happy to pay for it and I'm anxious to see what the new software looks like and if it will be compatible with or better than what i already have.

 

[Yair]

Actually, we're OK these days. We went through a really bad patch for most of last year, but things have improved a lot since then. Part of the problem was a long, long hiatus in EN Publishing, and part of the remedy was the GameStore. Which, I'm pleased to say, turned us around and put us back on track.

Glad to know.

That's still not my ideal vision for ENWorld's economics, honestly. ENWorld isn't sufficiently supported directly by its members - through dedicated fees such as community supporter accounts or server drives. Instead it is supported indirectly by referring traffic to other sites and getting a comission, by selling advertising banners, by generating income through the ENPublishing subsidiary, and so on. That's a buisness model - and don't get me wrong, I'm glad it works. But it's still a buisness model, not a self-supporting community. 'We' may be a viable buisness, but we are not a viable community. (See how 'we' in buisness just doesn't fit? We can form a viable community, 'we' cannot be part of a viable buisness, although we can support one.) But again, I'm glad ENWorld is viable and very glad Morrus doesn't need to dip into his pockets to pay for it.

 

[philreed]

. . . and part of the remedy was the GameStore..

 

[Razz]

If it's a $4.99 or maybe $5.99 subscrition I'll do it.

And if only the DM needs the Tabletop software program and the rest of the layers don't have to pay for it, then I'd get that.

We use OPEN RPG for our tabletop RP gaming and Teamspeak for the voice chat. Both are free. My players won't bother playing D&D online if they have to pay monthly for it.

 

[delericho]

And if only the DM needs the Tabletop software program and the rest of the layers don't have to pay for it, then I'd get that.

Sorry, why should DMs have to pay for the priviledge of running games online? Surely, if the cost for a group of N people to play is going to be $X per month, then each person should be expected to subscribe at a cost of $X/N, rather than one person having to pay the full amount, and the others paying $0?

We use OPEN RPG for our tabletop RP gaming and Teamspeak for the voice chat. Both are free. My players won't bother playing D&D online if they have to pay monthly for it.

Very good point. If Wizards expect people to pay for online play, they'll need to offer something that other solutions don't, or at least offer the same features in a better form (such as a fully integrated package of video, chat, dice rollers, interactive battlemat, or whatever).

 

[Razz]

Sorry, why should DMs have to pay for the priviledge of running games online? Surely, if the cost for a group of N people to play is going to be $X per month, then each person should be expected to subscribe at a cost of $X/N, rather than one person having to pay the full amount, and the others paying $0?

Or a player, or if a couple of people chip in, whatever. My point is, the whole thing falls apart when some of your gaming buddies refuse to pay monthly to play online. I think the subscription should be a small one, but the one that downloads the program is issued up to 5 codes that he can give to his players to enter. If he wants more to invite more people, he'd pay a higher subscription fee. Or whatever. There're ideas to do this the right way and ideas that will get it done all wrong.

 

[jmucchiello]

My reaction to this is simple: I must not be in their target market. I accept that. I rarely go to their website now and in the future will have even less reason to go. Fine by me. There is so much info on the web that anytime a website decides they don't need me is a benefit: One less bookmark to check in on.

If you are not willing to pay for the content, then quietly move on. I don't go to the Ferrari dealership and complain about their prices. I just accept that I'm not the customer they are looking for. Same thing here.

 

[Razz]

I just realized they said the content will be updated DAILY and not MONTHLY.

Maybe I will subscribe if that's the case...

 

[ShinHakkaider]

My reaction to this is simple: I must not be in their target market. I accept that. I rarely go to their website now and in the future will have even less reason to go. Fine by me. There is so much info on the web that anytime a website decides they don't need me is a benefit: One less bookmark to check in on.

If you are not willing to pay for the content, then quietly move on. I don't go to the Ferrari dealership and complain about their prices. I just accept that I'm not the customer they are looking for. Same thing here.

What? Stop your crazy talk! Common sense has no place here!

 

[Maggan]

well, if nothing else this is become a more and more plausible explanation as to why CMPs eTools license was yanked.

I want to know two things:

1. Planned roll out date.
2. How much free material are they going to release as well?

The date is important, since it really would really put a perspective on the further development of D&D in regards a new edition of the rules.

The free stuff is important from a "how much are we pissing people off here" point of view.

Judging from the description of the service, I'd subscribe. If I felt the price was ok, of course. How much is that? Maybe the price of a book, or 29.99 for a year or so.

/M