GoodGuy98 0 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Hello, I purchased the Lifetime Supporter ($30 One-Time Payment) option from the Donation web page: http://mediabrowser.tv/donate/ When the registration key arrived, it said it was only valid for the life of the 3.xmajor version. Every Lifetime option I have purchased was always valid for my lifetime, not just the current version. The Donation web page made no mention of being just for the current major release. Is my key really valid forever or just the 3.x version? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One2Go 98 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 (edited) All MB 2.* members had to purchase MB 3* supporter keys. If you meditate on this there is a difference for lifetime support of an active developed application that changes as its underlying infrastructure changes versus providing a life time support for a service. All the programs that I ever bought I had to pay an upgrade fee when it went from present version to new major version. Take Video Redo which just released version 5 upgrade fee applies. On the other hand I have a lifetime license for Media Center Master, but that is just one program that uses an API for different sites, no new features need to be developed just change the program when the API changes as was the recent case with theTVDB.com. If you want that the Devs to put food on the table for their families then it is a small price to pay for an upgrade fee whenever there is a new major release, otherwise there is no incentive to further develop the product. Edited November 25, 2014 by One2Go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14910 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 Most "lifetime" periods are for the life of the product, not yours (e.g. TiVo - the subscription is for the life of the box). It isn't realistic to guarantee something in the world of technology for the entire lifetime of any human. Also, two other points: 1) I would expect the lifetime of 3.x to be quite a while. We started completely from scratch and re-wrote everything. We don't plan to do that again any time soon . 2) If, for some reason, we did move on to 4.0 in a relatively short period of time (next couple years) then we would probably grant some sort of period where keys transfer or you can upgrade for some nominal amount. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodGuy98 0 Posted November 25, 2014 Author Share Posted November 25, 2014 In my case I have purchased a lifetime license for XYplorer and the author never charged for updates since paying. I also purchased the lifetime Plex Pass at the old rate and to the best of my knowledge, it applies to the current and all future releases. The Lifetime Plex Pass was $74.99 which is quite a bit more than MB. I have just started playing with Media Browser when I saw it mentioned on a blog, so I am not familiar with the advantages it offers over other solutions. I am used to software products that change major releases fairly often, so your point about expecting the lifetime of 3.x to be quite a while is helpful. Perhaps it would be helpful to add information to the donation web page mentioning the lifetime of the major version rather than forever. There is a web site called BitsDuJour that offers daily deals on various software and many people mention they prefer to buy products with lifetime updates. Thank you for the replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14910 Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 There is a web site called BitsDuJour that offers daily deals on various software and many people mention they prefer to buy products with lifetime updates. Yes, everyone prefers "free" over "not free" - except when it comes to their actual work. BTW - the Plex pass is now north of $170 for the "lifetime" option. And, that refers again to the life of their product, not you. There is no way they can guarantee to provide you their service for your entire life. We are an open-source project with most of our work coming from peoples' free time but we do offer the donation options to help keep incentives for the platform to continue to grow and become even better than it is now. I feel we offer an incredible value even with our lifetime support options but everyone is free to make their own choices and it is possible to use our system to great benefit completely for free. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twisted 8 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 (edited) @@ebr I would like to suggest changing your Lifetime Supporter Membership description. I have been working with @@Luke on fixing some issues I am having with how Media Browser sees my music collection. http://mediabrowser.tv/community/index.php?/topic/15937-music-mood-playlists/ I appreciated the support in trying to resolve my issue, so I decided to support today. I was a little taken back when the email arrived letting me known my ($40 Lifetime Supporter Membership) means the lifetime of version 3.x and not the lifetime of the software. I have never purchased a lifetime supporter key for software that lasted just for the current version. If that was the case, it was sold as purchasing version x. Knowing this ahead of time, I would have never purchased it. I was planning on becoming a lifetime subscriber and then donating again when the team added features that were useful to my needs. Setting up the additional bonus features, just to have to pay again to keep them in a few years is not a cycle I wish to start. If I would have known this was your pricing model, I would have just made a smaller donation to support @@Luke for his efforts. I now have something I do not want to set up, as it will be useless to me in a few years. Judging by your pricing strategy and price increase history, it seems like you will be increasing your price a few times with each version. Supporters that purchased a lifetime supporter key today will be paying more when 4x is released to access the same bonus features they have today. The thought of continuously having to purchase a lifetime membership every few years or so to keep the small list of additional bonus features running, is a little pricey (in my opinion) for an “open-source project”. XBMC/Kodi has been around for almost 12 years and is on version 14 (with no bonus features you currently need to pay extra for). Once they start developing the server for their media software, competing with them is going to become more and more difficult. In the end you are building a fan base of loyalists who will talk positively about your project and stick with you for years as you perfect and build it out. Some users will take everything they can for free and others will support, as they have a vested interest in your success. I am all for the team getting paid what you think is fair for your work; I just think you should be more open and honest with your members, when it comes to supporting Media Browser. I came to Media Browser over Kodi and Plex, as I thought there was a great community here and the developers were very passionate about the project. That is the type of community I want to support and be a part of. I am open to paying what you think is fair for your hard work and dedication to the project. I just want to know what I am paying for, before I purchase. Your current “Lifetime Supporter Membership” is misleading and unethical. I would like to suggest adding the version limitation to your lifetime membership description or changing it all together to a Media Browser 3x Membership. This way users are not surprised when their lifetime key arrives with date limitations! Edited February 16, 2015 by Twisted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37058 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Thank for your support. Keep in mind, the time period between versions 2 and 3 was 2009 to mid 2013, so based on our versioning track record, I think you're good for a long time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aspdend 174 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I've been using MB since version 2 and was happy to pay to be a lifetime supporter of that platform. I did the same with version 3 when it came out - paid for lifetime support. I don't expect that lifetime support will be for either my life nor for all future iterations of the software. Given the changes from 2 to 3 were and are huge, I would expect that version 4 will not appear until there is a significant uplift from version 3. There's a company I use called Microsoft and every few years I pay for the latest software from them for my OS for all my computers - that's why I'm currently on Windows 7 and avoided Windows 8 - but I do expect to receive all Windows 7 updates whilst I am still running it, but I don't expect to be upgraded to Windows 8 for free. I appreciate that I may get the next version free, but that's more an issue of the huge b***s up they made of Windows 8 rather than Microsoft suddenly becoming generous... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14910 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Yes, realize that the lifetime of version 3.x is expected to be quite long. Also, we would not necessarily require a new donation for a move to a new major version. It would really depend on what was involved in creating that new version. Version 3 of MB actually bears no resemblance to Version 2 except that version 2 was morphed into what is now just one of our client apps. The actual software was a complete re-write from the ground up encompassing thousands of man-hours of work. And that work was done by a different group of people than the one that built version 2. Therefore - it was an entirely new donation model. It would probably take another scenario like that one for us to not continue to honor our current supporters in another major version. But, in the case of that happening again, we want to be up-front about it now. Finally, if the features you gain by being a supporter (thank you) are not worth $40ishUSD to you every four or five years then we somehow need to create more value than we already have. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlo 4330 Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I think you guys are way over thinking this. If the $40 was only good for 2 years (will be longer) then that's only $20 a year or about a nickle a day. Hell it's only a dime a day roughly if the $40 was per year and not per "version". If I horded this money and kept it to myself then together with my good looks I could get a cup of coffee at star bucks once every 3 to 4 weeks. Come on cheap skates. Carlo 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dark_slayer 103 Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 Finally, if the features you gain by being a supporter (thank you) are not worth $40ishUSD to you every four or five years then we somehow need to create more value than we already have. Not that you were asking for this feedback, but I'm a v3 lifetime just because I think you guys are deserving. I only use one of the add-ons and it's only a slightly more convenient solution than I already had. I disagree on the value aspect of a lifetime in relation to Plex for example. They require pass subscription for what I think should be core features. Obviously it seems like a good business model to hold things like multi-user and plex-sync hostage to pass subscribers only. Fortunately when I really needed one of those options (multi-user) you guys already existed and provided what I thought was a better solution. If I needed sync I would have probably been one of the early lifetime plex pass subscribers. On the other end, I wonder comparatively what the XBMC Foundation receives annually vs Plex with their Pass subscriptions. It could be Plex on top for holding their useful-niche features hostage. Obviously you guys have your own decisions to make. I have donated to a few HTPC centric projects like XBMC, mediacentermaster, mychannellogosXL, and MB3. The only one I donated to because I couldn't get the same features some other way was mychannellogosXL. The other three was just because I was happy with how well the product was meeting my needs 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWGiles 10 Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 I agree that the button is a bit misleading, it could be a little more descriptive. However I find that £27 for a few years of software use, and it is daily use for me, is still very good value. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasonmcroy 315 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I was a supporter very early on (before the price increase) just because. I think programmers and developers should get paid for their efforts when it's a good product that I used everyday. In reference to Plex and their Plexpass, I realized early on that you are then paying for the extra features that are in Beta. With MB, you have the option of whether you want to run Stable, Beta or Dev software. Seems to make more sense to have more choices. -Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twisted 8 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 (edited) @@ebr Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I think a few people glazed over it and are now chiming in to justify the price. There is nothing in this thread that challenges the price of Media Browser. Everything comes down to perceived value. If people think you are charging too much for what they see as a value, they will not support. That whole conversation is a separate topic. I did state my personal opinion; I would rather pay upfront (whatever price that is) than pay every few years. I apologies, as I should have left that off of this thread. It is causing the topic to shift away from the point of the thread. The purpose of this thread is not about how Media Browser should be priced or how much you are charging, it is about how you are selling this to your users. Your lifetime supporter description is very misleading and should be changed. I understand you guys are trying to give away as much as you can and only charge when you absolutely have too. I am sure a lot of people appreciate that, as it allows them to support whenever they see additional value. I also think a lot of people are probably surprised when they purchase the lifetime option and it comes with a caveat. I just think you should be more open and honest with users, before they buy. The lifetime support should be changed to version 3x. Once the 4x version releases, you can then decide if you want to change 3x (the former lifetime supporter) to 4x and require users to donate again for the additional changes. No one here is challenging what you should be paid; I think we just want to be clear on what we are paying for, before we buy Edited February 23, 2015 by Twisted 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheesegeezer 3086 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Am I a life time member?? I have no idea :S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abobader 2942 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Am I a life time member?? I have no idea :S That make both of us 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deathsquirrel 741 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 You can see your support status in the web UI. Go to the Dashboard > click help on the bottom left hand side of the page > click the Donate tab. It will say what sort of key you have installed just below the Support the Media Browser Team blurb at the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wurtzelsepp 0 Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 the livetime support donation button does not work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37058 Posted May 16, 2015 Share Posted May 16, 2015 the livetime support donation button does not work where? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejrodn1290 5 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) After purchase of the lifetime supporter my server hasn't be acting right. Plugins was able to be set one time and now no more settings just uninstall pops up, work fine for a minute than everything went south. I have uninstall & install the server several times and still want work. I hope there's a fix for this problem, because this is crazy.....help me!! Edited June 28, 2015 by ejrodn1290 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37058 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 After purchase of the lifetime supporter my server hasn't be acting right. Plugins was able to be set one time and now no more settings just uninstall pops up, work fine for a minute than everything went south. I have uninstall & install the server several times and still want work. I hope there's a fix for this problem, because this is crazy.....help me!! Sorry to hear that. Can you describe your problem in more detail, as well as provide the server log? http://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/790-how-to-report-a-problem/ Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejrodn1290 5 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) Yes, after updating or pasting my support key I was able to change settings in my plugins but it has stop and the cinema mode actually worked at one time. server-63570959768.txt Edited June 28, 2015 by ejrodn1290 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejrodn1290 5 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 (edited) Here's my transcode after the facts: transcode-51676e00-c4cb-4537-b85e-23bd57bf6aad.txt Also getting unhandled exceptions: unhandled_a6a9c18b-024d-48af-9c30-a057a203acec.txt unhandled_52c10382-9746-4b01-8769-25e2f8392603.txt Edited June 28, 2015 by ejrodn1290 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37058 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 It looks like the unhandled exceptions are coming from EmbyTV. I will take a look at them later, but you can solve that for now by just temporary removing the plugin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejrodn1290 5 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 It looks like the unhandled exceptions are coming from EmbyTV. I will take a look at them later, but you can solve that for now by just temporary removing the plugin. Yes, that fixed that problem!! (Now just need the plugins and cinema mode to be back working) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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