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Note that they (Syntrillium) keep their business model going
by having a plug-in architecture, and the cost
of the plug ins is approximately two third that
of the core program. So the user picks only the
functionality they need as they specialize. The
migration from freeware to cheapware for that
particular product served to carve out a sustainable
niche. I could not write the programs they provide
but I can apply them fairly quickly (about two weeks).
Had they kept it in the original DOS-mode where one
typed in formulas, it would have never made it to
my machine much less my desk top.
Of the comers in this kind of market, Rick Jeliffe's
Topologi stands out for XML. For VRML, the Spazz3D editor
is a very good buy.
Low initial cost to get productive and make it over
the hump of the learning curve, plus expandability
as needed at costs commensurate with the initial
price create a sustainable business model. This
is perhaps only true for software that tends to
sell to individuals, but with attractive site
licensing, it can certainly apply to an enterprise.
Studio mics are another area where a sweet spot
price emerged: approx $299. Here the next level
of real performance improvement is about $2k. So
there can be a big gap between the semi-pro gear
and the full-up professional systems that is wide
enough for the semi-pro gear to take the market.
We refer to that here as a tiered market where
the high end is tier 1, the next level is tier 2,
and so on. What happens as technology becomes
more powerful is that tier 1 collapses into tier
2. This is where the aggressive start ups can
indeed start carving off a piece of the pie and
force the tier 1 systems to come out and fight.
len
-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas B. Passin [mailto:tpassin@comcast.net]
I use CE and Len, you are right on, it is marvellous. I do not mind paying
for a significant upgrade for low-cost superb software like this. Their
authors deserve support. There are a few others - EditPlus, the text
editor, is another one of my favorite cheapware programs.
The value really shows up when I cannot picture myself creating a comparable
program myself - either it would take much too much time, or too much
specialized knowledge.
It works if the price stays low and the value fair, but once it rises too
high, people stop buying (or at least I do).
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