>>any software developer can use the following method
>>1. 30 day trial
I disagree. Take Evernote as an example. First, I would not want to start using that type of software on a 30-day basis. The essence of the program is saving a lot of material for the long term. I never would have started using Evernote in the first place if I knew I would likely to be cut off after 30 days.
If you read about the philosophy behind Evernote marketing they want their free users to build the product into their everyday routines. That takes time, and the time varies greatly from user to user. My own history had a series of ups and downs in using the product. For me, the turning point was bumping against the monthly upload cap. Personally, I think the monthly upload cap is a brilliant divide between free and premium use for Evernote. If you are bumping against the cap, then you are indeed a serious user. Other products like Dropbox and Snapdraggon have absolute storage amount limits. I had bumped against those, and wasn't motivated to pay. I just deleted old things and moved on. But with Evernote the amount of uploading you do on a daily basis is the key to making the system useful, and that is where they charge for enhanced service.
I think one of Mike's points about freemium models is that there is no one system that will work for everything, not even within one industry. That frustrates some people who want one set of simple rules that guarantee success. That isn't going to happen.
I don't want to hammer on you, but the other thing that is wrong with your model is that there is no "CwF" component. The Evernote guys are out there. They talk to their customers with regular podcasts that are cheesy but informative. They go to a lot of trade shows across many industries and talk to people. Most important, they listen to their customers and implement features the customers are asking for. In a freemium model that sort of thing is at least as important as having a reasonable fee structure that is appropriate for your business.
I just changed from a free to paid user of Evernote yesterday. I have tried several other services like it, but evernote is the first that I found myself using every day. They keep adding to the service and making it more useful and thus more valuable to me. They also do a good job of CwF. But I would never have never started using Evernote if I had to pay.
Actually, what Sony is claiming is slightly different. They do not claim that Anon stole the data. They claim that before the breech the network was under a heavy denial of service attack. They claim that their entire online staff was defending against the attack and that the data was stolen under cover of the attack. A DDOS attack would be more of Anon's style, but anyone who was capable of the break in was probably also capable of mounting the DDOS by themselves.
Sony's claim is that Anon was responsible for the DDOS attack and thus provided cover for the break in. To me, that doesn't pass muster. For one thing, a DDOS attack would not have put the incriminating files on the server.
The big entertainment industry companies are increasingly believing their own myths about copyright. Anything they don't like is now branded as a copyright issue because Hollywood has come to believe that copyright is some divine creation put on this earth to allow total control over everything they touch. Apparently they have not noticed that the general public and the courts are starting to move in the opposite direction.
I always figured that if an "expert" was correct more than 50% of the time, then it was a win. It is easy for experts to get distracted by some detail and miss the big picture which is why it is much easier to be wrong than right. I watched Bill Gates pretty closely when he was still running Microsoft, and it looked to me that he was right a little over half the time. But that was enough to make him a billionaire.
In the end it will probably just be a symbolic gesture on the part of Texas. But sometimes symbolic gestures are worth doing. To date there have been very few checks on what TSA has done as each new procedure becomes more outlandish. We have had a lot of small protests by individuals and small groups, but escalating to having state legislatures push back might get the TSA's attention.
I was expecting to see "Books about Flies" on your list. There were two books on Amazon that were listed at $23 million dollars, plus $3.99 shipping and handling.
On the post: Homeland Security Demands Mozilla Remove Firefox Extension That Redirects Seized Domains
On the post: Chicago Politicians Say Mobile Phones Should Block Kids From Texting While Driving
On the post: Once Again, Freemium Often Isn't A Good Model, But That Doesn't Mean 'Free' Doesn't Work
Re:
>>1. 30 day trial
I disagree. Take Evernote as an example. First, I would not want to start using that type of software on a 30-day basis. The essence of the program is saving a lot of material for the long term. I never would have started using Evernote in the first place if I knew I would likely to be cut off after 30 days.
If you read about the philosophy behind Evernote marketing they want their free users to build the product into their everyday routines. That takes time, and the time varies greatly from user to user. My own history had a series of ups and downs in using the product. For me, the turning point was bumping against the monthly upload cap. Personally, I think the monthly upload cap is a brilliant divide between free and premium use for Evernote. If you are bumping against the cap, then you are indeed a serious user. Other products like Dropbox and Snapdraggon have absolute storage amount limits. I had bumped against those, and wasn't motivated to pay. I just deleted old things and moved on. But with Evernote the amount of uploading you do on a daily basis is the key to making the system useful, and that is where they charge for enhanced service.
I think one of Mike's points about freemium models is that there is no one system that will work for everything, not even within one industry. That frustrates some people who want one set of simple rules that guarantee success. That isn't going to happen.
I don't want to hammer on you, but the other thing that is wrong with your model is that there is no "CwF" component. The Evernote guys are out there. They talk to their customers with regular podcasts that are cheesy but informative. They go to a lot of trade shows across many industries and talk to people. Most important, they listen to their customers and implement features the customers are asking for. In a freemium model that sort of thing is at least as important as having a reasonable fee structure that is appropriate for your business.
On the post: Once Again, Freemium Often Isn't A Good Model, But That Doesn't Mean 'Free' Doesn't Work
On the post: Sony Blames Anonymous For Latest Hack...
Sony's claim is that Anon was responsible for the DDOS attack and thus provided cover for the break in. To me, that doesn't pass muster. For one thing, a DDOS attack would not have put the incriminating files on the server.
On the post: EMI Dumps ASCAP For Digital Licensing
Re: Re: More complex licensing
Oddly, the exact same statement seems to apply to the top execs in most RIAA companies.
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On the post: Tolkien Estate 'Settles' Dispute Over Historical Fiction Book With JRR Tolkien As A Character
I don't think the estate needs to be emboldened to continue its campaign. They seem to take to it like a Hobbit takes to a hole in the ground.
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Re:
On the post: DailyDirt: Expensive Things To Buy...
http://news.discovery.com/tech/amazon-lists-books-for-23-million-bucks.html
On the post: Sony Admits That Playstation Hacker Got Tons Of Info, Including Passwords
Re: Re:
Bingo. That should have been their first thought.
On the post: Sony Admits That Playstation Hacker Got Tons Of Info, Including Passwords
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