[mythtv-users] LxMSuite.com to provide services to the Myth
community
Dewey Smolka
dsmolka at gmail.com
Fri May 6 13:24:57 UTC 2005
While I am positively allergic to monthly charges, it strikes me that
having a paid listings service is a good idea for a reason that no one
here has yet mentioned: that it mitigates a major risk for anyone
wanting to build and sell Myth boxes.
I don't sell Myth boxes, but the idea has occured to me. I'm a
tinkerer not a salesman, and I would have a hard time selling someone
a $1000 machine that I knew could stop functioning at any time for
reasons entirely beyond my or the user's control (let alone the
reasons within my control).
If you give a person the option of a free listings service that can
drop off sometimes and may be cancelled in the future, and a paid
service that adds good content and is priced reasonably, the person
will more than likely chose to pay and feel good about it.
I also like the idea of the voting system -- it encourages
participation in the project and does something to show where the
subscription money is going, and it allows the project to develop at
an even faster clip.
I'd be curious to know what kind of strategy estimates LxM has -- how
many people they figure will sign up in the next year or so. The FAQ
says that they may have to raise the $5 fee in the future. If it takes
off like wildfire and they have 100,000 subscribers next year, would
the fee go down?
I'd be more skeptical of this if it didn't have the blessing of the
developers. On balance, however, this is a very good move for MythTV.
It will open Myth to more users, provide a financial base for future
development, and, most importantly, allow MythTV to continue as a
free, collaborative project of unlimited flexibility, which is why
most of us got involved in the first place.
We shouldn't be fretting about this, we should be toasting it.
Congratulations, MythTV.
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