Quote:
Originally Posted by Otha
There is. Use non-trivial, non-intrusive copy protection, (I hate the Orwellian phrase "DRM") and stop worrying about the people who hack copy protection and download  software for kicks. They aren't your customers. Your customers are the people who have a relationship with your company and want to support your product. It's up to the publishers to cultivate that relationship and grow their fan base. That's the best strategy for protecting their profits. Focusing on the customer you never had and are never likely to gain to the detriment of the customer you're hoping to keep is a self-defeating strategy in the long run. |
Oh, very good points.
Honest people don't like being treated like crooks; that's for sure.
I've read that there are some indie companies that are experimenting with selling their games without copy protection. The hope is that their sales will actually increase. One developer even went so far as to cut prices a bit to reach more of his audience. I guess it makes sense that the greater the audience, the greater the profits in the long run. Why is it that some of the larger companies haven't taken such risks, when they already put so much on the line as it is for a quick buck?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tessa
Treat your customers how you would like to be treated tends to generate positive results. Provide a quality product and it will speak for itself, people will be very amicable for paying for future upgrades/add-ons, real customers support the company/developers in hopes that they will make more good products.
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Works great for small local businesses. I might be wrong on this, but large corporations are just too big to see their customers as being the bottom line. Brings another thought to my mind: small indie developers have to be Johnny-on-the-spot with support and patches because they cannot afford to lose customers.
