Now WotC has taken Dragonlance (merged)

[Friadoc]

If Margaret Weis wants to OWN Dragonlance, she should start raising capital.

Hopefully, if (big if, since the novels sell well) Dragonlance ever goes on the block, WotC and Hasbro would be kind enough to offer Margaret and Tracy first crack (of course, didn't they do Ravenloft first, too?) at buying the rights.

A point of clarity on something I just said, too, although I do not agree with their pulling the IP from Weis and Co., I won't say that WotC doesn't have the right.

They've owned the IP for DECADES, it's theirs since they first bought it from Margaret and Tracy back in the day up until and through the license, and it is theirs to do with as they please.

I think it sucks, however I've not read a Dragonlance novel in close to 15+ years and the only RPG material I own for it, if I remember rightly, is the original book.

I loved the world, but I sort of lost my taste for it once Raistlin's story was mostly, fully, told. Him, Caramon, and crew were the stories I started and ended on, although I might hit a book store one of these days and refresh my collection. Tammy, my girlfriend, saw my box of Dl novels one time when we moved and was surprised as she never saw them before - it's a pretty large box since I own just about everything, novel wise, up until the mid 90s.

 

[JoeGKushner]

The only time I've seen moves like this as 'classic' in corporations is when they're trying to trim the fat and make things a nice digestible package for sale.

 

[MerricB]

Now, obviously, we don't know whither Dragonlance. I never cared for it, myself, but it holds a place of regard in the D&D pantheon, and I hate to see those things fade away.

DL holds up as much more a place as a book setting, not a game setting. (If there are adventures that get slammed more than the original DL adventures, they're called things like "Terrible Trouble at Tragidore").

Personally, I think Joe's comment about this being preparatory for a sale of D&D isn't unfeasible. Quite possible, actually.

Still, I think the ending of the DL license isn't really going to affect many gamers.

Cheers!

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

The only time I've seen moves like this as 'classic' in corporations is when they're trying to trim the fat and make things a nice digestible package for sale.

I was just thinking the same thing, but didn't want to fan the conspiracy flames.

So, shall we start a thread to discuss potential buyers?

 

[Troll Wizard]

Over the last year WotC has taken their IP licenses back from ...

WW - Ravenloft
CMP - E-Tools
Paizo - Dragon & Dungeon
Weis & Hickman - Dragonlance

Didn't WW chose not to renew Ravenloft and Gamma World because the product's sales did not return the revenue they expected (over the years they had the license) and therefore did not want to continue paying the yearly license fee any longer? If I remember reading correctly from WW own boards.

 

[JeffB]

The only time I've seen moves like this as 'classic' in corporations is when they're trying to trim the fat and make things a nice digestible package for sale.

Ding Ding Ding..we have a winner.

Actually...normally I would agree with you Joe, based on my own experience in the corporate world.

However...it would not make sense with this big rollout of the "digital initiative".

More likely..it's as mentioned previously, a D&D run and produced solely by WOTC/HASBRO, and IMO, a sign 4E..sans OGL/D20 licensing ....is coming....and sooner than we think.

 

[WhatGravitas]

The only time I've seen moves like this as 'classic' in corporations is when they're trying to trim the fat and make things a nice digestible package for sale.

Implying Hasbro will sell WotC off? Or sell D&D off? But then:
1) Hasbro will not sell off WotC, as long as it holds MtG - it's their foothold in the CCG market.
2) Therefore, they're going to sell D&D off? But then... what about D&DMinis? AFAIK, they're also profitable.
3) What about the videogame licenses? They're recently renewed... according to Baur:

Alas, no. WotC just recently renewed the computer game licenses for D&D to Infogrames. So they aren't taking all licenses in house, and are specifically licensing out some forms of digital content.

(from here).

Now throw in "Digital Initiative".

Strange, isn't it?

We definitively need a conspiracy-thread... and I don't think of Nightfalls!

 

[Vocenoctum]

More likely..it's as mentioned previously, a D&D run and produced solely by WOTC/HASBRO, and IMO, a sign 4E..sans OGL/D20 licensing ....is coming....and sooner than we think.

How is it possible to be sooner than we think, when half the board thought it would be out in 06?

 

[Razz]

WotC giving away the Oriental Adventures license to Rokugan was pure stupidity. Especially with all the anime fans out there now and Americans in love with Asian culture.

I hope they renew OA under Kara-Tur, a setting filled wit more cultural variety, generalization, and the OA home of the Forgotten Realms (yet simltaneously generalized and big enough to stick in any campaign).

And, yes, they did update OA to 3.5 in the pages of Dragon Magazine. There was an OA 3.5 update article done a couple years ago I believe. Can't remember the exact issue.

 

[smootrk]

I find it ironic that being 'accused of working for WotC' is called out as aggressive posting. Funny.