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What an opportunity! Those pirates obviously like your software but might not be willing to pay for it. Rather than simply killing the key (turning off the user

What an opportunity! Those pirates obviously like your software but might not be willing to pay for it. Rather than simply killing the key (turning off the user base) they are trying to slowly convert these people to paying customers! I like it and thank goodness they had the sense to do it.

arn 16y ago
Yep, it's actually very interesting. In fact, it's possibly a great marketing technique, if a polite offer to upgrade to the paid version converts at all.
- pixelcort 16y ago
  Amanita Design did this with their Machinarium Pirate Amnesty promotion: http://machinarium.net/blog/2010/08/05/machinarium-pirate-amnesty/ http://machinarium.net/blog/2010/08/05/machinarium-pirate-am... It doubled as a limited-time discount for first-time players as well.
- trotsky 16y ago
  I think it's brilliant. Thinking about it, I'd do it intentionally at least for AV. Once a typical AV customer has chosen one specific product and is willing to buy it, I think it's very unlikely they will first look for a pirate version of it. I dare say a large amount of their profits come from retail or pre-installed trial conversions or high priced renewals. The mass of 1st tier AV available for $0-$10 after competitive upgrade rebates etc. clearly shows they expect most of their money in the long run. But imo someone looking to pirate AV is mostly going to choose a product out of the options available for downloading. They may have a preference but if it's simply not available they'll go for #2. Also, they may choose partially based a reputation for working consistently - eg people report product x has worked flawlessly for a year but product y is always being broken and needing new cracks. Legit free versions may be option C. If you accept my presumptions - AV makes most of their money in ongoing or addons - and pirates are cost conscious but rather brand agnostic - any one firm likely loses very little in sales by having their product copied. On the other hand the firm gets the chance to have the user grow comfortable with the software and all of the highest tier features if they don't cut it off. Obviously there is a non-zero conversion rate here and importantly they may no longer view free options as feature rich enough. So by this logic it's actually in the best interests of the company to make sure their product is widely available in pirate circles instead of fighting it. Why let your competitor get a chance at a piracy conversion instead of you? Not only that but you'd want to make sure it was a good experience - trojan free - no bad cracks - up to date signatures - so the user had the best impression of it. It's the ultimate in price discrimination - giving it away free to those who wouldn't pay anyway in hopes of future conversions - something they do anyway with free after rebate deals - while ensuring the illicit nature of the distribution keeps it from cannibalizing most legitimate sales.
prawn 16y ago
Didn't see details in the article about how they are making their pitch, but including photos of the developers and explaining the work they've done to create the software would likely help them win some sales.
- jcl 16y ago
  A picture of a face -- of any kind -- might improve results. http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/06/28/scarecrows-work-on-people-too/ http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/06/28/scarecrows-...
  - pbhjpbhj 16y ago
    I wonder if I get a tshirt with a big pair of eyes on it I can get better service, cheaper rates, more honest dealings ... Smiley faces on bills (immediately payable invoice notices, eg in a restaurant) earn greater tips for the server too.
    - electromagnetic 16y ago
      Buying a shotgun would work better, but I think it has more legal repercussions.

arn 16y ago

Yep, it's actually very interesting. In fact, it's possibly a great marketing technique, if a polite offer to upgrade to the paid version converts at all.

pixelcort 16y ago
Amanita Design did this with their Machinarium Pirate Amnesty promotion: http://machinarium.net/blog/2010/08/05/machinarium-pirate-amnesty/ http://machinarium.net/blog/2010/08/05/machinarium-pirate-am... It doubled as a limited-time discount for first-time players as well.
trotsky 16y ago
I think it's brilliant. Thinking about it, I'd do it intentionally at least for AV. Once a typical AV customer has chosen one specific product and is willing to buy it, I think it's very unlikely they will first look for a pirate version of it. I dare say a large amount of their profits come from retail or pre-installed trial conversions or high priced renewals. The mass of 1st tier AV available for $0-$10 after competitive upgrade rebates etc. clearly shows they expect most of their money in the long run. But imo someone looking to pirate AV is mostly going to choose a product out of the options available for downloading. They may have a preference but if it's simply not available they'll go for #2. Also, they may choose partially based a reputation for working consistently - eg people report product x has worked flawlessly for a year but product y is always being broken and needing new cracks. Legit free versions may be option C. If you accept my presumptions - AV makes most of their money in ongoing or addons - and pirates are cost conscious but rather brand agnostic - any one firm likely loses very little in sales by having their product copied. On the other hand the firm gets the chance to have the user grow comfortable with the software and all of the highest tier features if they don't cut it off. Obviously there is a non-zero conversion rate here and importantly they may no longer view free options as feature rich enough. So by this logic it's actually in the best interests of the company to make sure their product is widely available in pirate circles instead of fighting it. Why let your competitor get a chance at a piracy conversion instead of you? Not only that but you'd want to make sure it was a good experience - trojan free - no bad cracks - up to date signatures - so the user had the best impression of it. It's the ultimate in price discrimination - giving it away free to those who wouldn't pay anyway in hopes of future conversions - something they do anyway with free after rebate deals - while ensuring the illicit nature of the distribution keeps it from cannibalizing most legitimate sales.

prawn 16y ago

Didn't see details in the article about how they are making their pitch, but including photos of the developers and explaining the work they've done to create the software would likely help them win some sales.

jcl 16y ago
A picture of a face -- of any kind -- might improve results. http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/06/28/scarecrows-work-on-people-too/ http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/06/28/scarecrows-...
- pbhjpbhj 16y ago
  I wonder if I get a tshirt with a big pair of eyes on it I can get better service, cheaper rates, more honest dealings ... Smiley faces on bills (immediately payable invoice notices, eg in a restaurant) earn greater tips for the server too.
  - electromagnetic 16y ago
    Buying a shotgun would work better, but I think it has more legal repercussions.