silentshark, correct I'm not asking about that but it's good to know. I've been thinking of ways to incorporate a combination of license key and server registration to thwart piracy. Although I don't know if app vendors will even allow an outside registration system.
skid, you're talking about obtaining a customer base and I'm talking about maintaining a customer base. Both are vital to ongoing success unless you're only looking to hit and run (make a million and retire, not that a million is enough to retire on.)
Here's a story about two companies, Cybermedia and Symantec. Symantec originally got its customer base from loyal Peter Norton customers when Symantec purchased The Peter Norton Group. Symantecs marketing was nothing to brag about, for many years they continued using Peter Nortons face on the front of their product box. (Not to mention their boxes are still yellow!) However, they hired very smart technical people and made great products. In jumps Cybermedia a new kid on the block with a cool name and one hell of a marketing team. Their flagship product was First Aid, a direct competitor to Norton Utilities. The box was appropriately white with a "red cross" outlined in red and filled with a pretty skyline. First Aid quickly caught on with the public and outsold Norton Utilities 20 to 1!! However, the privately held Cybermedia was not in business to compete with Symantec, Cybermedia execs wanted to be purchased by Symantec because thats what Symantec still does, purchase its competition. It didn't happen, while Cybermedias First Aid broke records in sales it also broke records in returns! The product was horrible; one of the utilities was supposed to poll the printer and deliver the status. The actual function did nothing but sleep for 8 seconds and return true, LOL! Fortunately for the execs Cybermedia was purchased by McAfee who immediately fired everyone except the marketing department! So everyone was happy, the Cybermedia execs were wealthy, Symantec continued on and is in business to this day, and the Cybermedia employees? Dont feel too bad, McAfee failed to hire security and the former employees left with computers and Herman Miller Aeron chairs in hand. Only the carpet and cubicles were left!
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