NEWS: OGL and SRD dates/info announced

[Moon-Lancer]

I have a question

i saw this line

"The 4e OGL will contain some aspects of the old d20 license, and is more restrictive in some areas than the prior Open Gaming License. We are tying the OGL more closely to D&D. There is a free registration process, a community standards clause, enforceability clauses, and no expiration date. Phase One publishers who sign a NDA will have the opportunity to read the OGL before they pay the $5000 early licensing fee."

does this mean I could be in phase one, sign the nda but not pay the fee and get a ogl?

 

[Rechan]

The 5k fee seems too small for WotC to actually plan on it being a revenue source, more likely it is a "keep the little boys out of the first wave" plan. Is this a good thing though?

More likely, it's a "Keep crappy products out of the first wave" plan.

Yes, there were some great, great 3.0 products from 3rd party people. But there was also a glut of awful, awful stuff, some of which wasn't even right, rules wise. And I think that a lot of FLGSes got burned on 3rd party stuff because they picked up too much crap from the getgo.

The 5K thing is pretty much "If you're going to publish right out of the gate, we're expecting you to be committed to putting out something worth your 5K investment."

 

[Rechan]

does this mean I could be in phase one, sign the nda but not pay the fee and get a ogl?

From the FAQ:

Q: Can anyone purchase an OGL Designer’s Kit?
A: Interested parties are required to possess a business license. Wizards of the Coast reserves the right to limit participation in this program as appropriate to the business.

If you have a business liscence, I guess you could.

 

[grimslade]

5k up front eats a lot of profit. Not that 3.X stuff is selling like blazes, but still. 5k for a 5 month head start? Can Expeditious Retreat swing that? ENWorld publishing? Both are solid producers of quality material but are small.

I like that the Tool kit keeps the publishers in the design loop with updates in real time. The proof is in the pudding, though.

Will WotC IP be opened up for the 5k license? Could we see Green Ronin illithid adventures in 4E? Or Paizo Yuan-Ti stuff? That would be an ongoing advantage after the head start.
I am glad that the SRD will go live with the release of the rules. It might sway some fence sitters to pick up the core.

EDIT: I should have refreshed before posting some questions answered by Mr Kulp's report.

 

[frankthedm]

Ok, lets get this straight, to publish for 4E befor NEXT year, it is $5000 out of pocket for a company?

That means about $15K more in cost for the print consumer who supports the FLGS since it is $5K to the company, 10K at distributor level and 15K at FLGS level.

Great...

 

[Charwoman Gene]

It sounds like the SRD is going to be very different than it was in 3e.

 

[Scribble]

I have a question

i saw this line



does this mean I could be in phase one, sign the nda but not pay the fee and get a ogl?

To be safe, I would direct that question to the email link provided.

My guess:

Sign the NDA, read the OGL, then if you decide you do not like the wording of the license, and no longer wish to support 4e, you can opt not to purchase the advanced package. No harm no foul.

 

[Chris_Nightwing]

Ok, lets get this straight, to publish for 4E befor NEXT year, it is $5000 out of pocket for a company?

That means about $15K more in cost for the print consumer who supports the FLGS since it is $5K to the company, 10K at distributor level and 15K at FLGS level.

Great...

It costs you nothing to publish next year (2009). It costs you $5000 to publish from August this year (2008).

I wonder about European licensing, any info?

 

[Rechan]

I ask this because I don't honestly know:

Will small publishers really be hurt by having to wait 5 months?

Companies like Paizo, Necromancer, WW's d20 branch, etc - they are full time publishers; that's what they do. They need to get the money ASAP to pay their full-time employees, so getting out of the gate would be in their best interest.

Small companies, at least to what I can tell, are hobbyists and gaming enthusiasts who do it as a side job, an "on the weekend and after work" project. Would waiting five months hurt them in any financial matter?

 

[JDJblatherings]

Isn't $5,000 a LOT of money for third party publishers?