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What is the difference between you not paying apple or you not paying dropbox? The upside for dropbox is you commenting here that you are using them and that t

by 0x12 15y ago

What is the difference between you not paying apple or you not paying dropbox? The upside for dropbox is you commenting here that you are using them and that their free tier is usable, so you are effectively a part of their marketing arm. If you really get utility out of dropbox then it is in your best interest that they continue to exist. Sooner or later that might translate into you pulling your wallet. Freemium offerings are predicated on statistics and dropbox seems to be doing just fine in spite of the freeloading nature of some of their customers.

dr_ 15y ago
There is no difference to me, there isn't much difference to Apple but there is to dropbox - their business is dependent on users paying for cloud storage. The problem with that, as I see it, is that in the longer run cloud storage becomes a commodity. Hence Jobs' description of it as a feature, instead of a product.
- 0x12 15y ago
  Access is also a commodity. That doesn't stop ISPs the world over from making a killing on it. Yes, it is a feature if you've already got an OS and a bunch of devices out there. But it is a product if you can do this seamlessly across all os's, and all devices. Both perspectives are equally valid in this case. In the end to the DropBox guys their product vision was worth more to them than Jobs' feature vision allowed him to pay for it. Time will tell if that was the right decision, for either party.
masklinn 15y ago
> What is the difference between you not paying apple or you not paying dropbox? Dropbox gets money from you paying for dropbox (it's a service), Apple gets money from you buying Apple hardware, iCloud is just there to give you reason to get Apple devices and keep buying Apple devices. > Freemium offerings are predicated on statistics and dropbox seems to be doing just fine in spite of the freeloading nature of some of their customers. Absolutely, but Dropbox's goal will still be to push you on the "premium" side of "freemium".

by 0x12 15y ago

dr_ 15y ago

There is no difference to me, there isn't much difference to Apple but there is to dropbox - their business is dependent on users paying for cloud storage. The problem with that, as I see it, is that in the longer run cloud storage becomes a commodity. Hence Jobs' description of it as a feature, instead of a product.

0x12 15y ago
Access is also a commodity. That doesn't stop ISPs the world over from making a killing on it. Yes, it is a feature if you've already got an OS and a bunch of devices out there. But it is a product if you can do this seamlessly across all os's, and all devices. Both perspectives are equally valid in this case. In the end to the DropBox guys their product vision was worth more to them than Jobs' feature vision allowed him to pay for it. Time will tell if that was the right decision, for either party.

masklinn 15y ago

> What is the difference between you not paying apple or you not paying dropbox? Dropbox gets money from you paying for dropbox (it's a service), Apple gets money from you buying Apple hardware, iCloud is just there to give you reason to get Apple devices and keep buying Apple devices. > Freemium offerings are predicated on statistics and dropbox seems to be doing just fine in spite of the freeloading nature of some of their customers. Absolutely, but Dropbox's goal will still be to push you on the "premium" side of "freemium".