[Zubersoft]

I apologize for misleading you or anyone else. I originally did plan to release all of the changes as an update, but based on the discussion, the majority of users view having a separate version as favorable. It's less of an update than a completely different revision of MobileSheets (like going from Windows XP to Windows 7). I plan on having much more smaller updates in the future instead of what this "update" has become.

Mike

[GraemeJ]

I don't have any objection about price of the app, only about misleading advertising.

To be fair to Mike - this marketing change was mainly brought about by the users, not the author.

He has put a lot of work into both the original version and the (now known as) Pro version and many of us felt that, considering the new version was going to be released as a free upgrade (and coupled with the fact that the Play Store platform is very poorly designed for upgrades - which you can read about in other threads) Mike was not receiving anything like a decent financial return for all his effort, from which we all benefit.

The upshot of all this was the majority of users said they would be more than pleased to pay for the new version (which has many, many changes and features not in the original version).

Basically, we bludgeoned him into it!!

[jeffn1]

I agree with Graeme.

Jeff

I don't have any objection about price of the app, only about misleading advertising.

To be fair to Mike - this marketing change was mainly brought about by the users, not the author.

He has put a lot of work into both the original version and the (now known as) Pro version and many of us felt that, considering the new version was going to be released as a free upgrade (and coupled with the fact that the Play Store platform is very poorly designed for upgrades - which you can read about in other threads) Mike was not receiving anything like a decent financial return for all his effort, from which we all benefit.

The upshot of all this was the majority of users said they would be more than pleased to pay for the new version (which has many, many changes and features not in the original version).

Basically, we bludgeoned him into it!!

[popoff]

After test the app for two days I agree with the actual price, even 3.99$ more, as I said before it isn't the real problem. But let me two suggestion:

1.- Remove the paragraph in the news that advertise free upgrades for users that buy the app now. It stops the misleadings about it.

2.- Try that the price of the upgrade will be as much the same that the new app. For instance if the new app will cost 12$ and the old 7$, the limit for the upgrade must be 5$. Also I don't agree with the one month limit to pay for the upgrade. Suppose that one buyer don't use the app for a month or isn't advertized about the offer ....

If you are planning about some "version jumps" in the future to get the income that pay your effort, the rigth way is to offer a perpetual upgrade price from one version to another. For instance:

v4 price: 7$
v5 price: 11$
v6 price: 15$
v4 to v5 upgrade: 4$
v5 to v6 upgrade: 4$
v4 to v6 upgrade: 8$

and so on ...

I can tell you about one applicattion that made a big mistake with upgrade costs and it is paying this mistake with less revenues. The app is "Tracktion", a popular and cheap DAW. It was free for users that bougth some mixer consoles from Mackie and also could be bougth standalone. At version 3, the author stops the developing of it. After 2 years Tracktion V4 appeared with an upgrade cost that was the half of the new price. Many users bougth the upgrade, and only 8 months after it, Tracktion 5 was in the market with a new upgrade price that was again the half of the new.

I and many users stops buying the app because T4 was plenty of bugs and without any improvement from T3. And at the end, a user that bougth T3, the T4 upgrade and the T5 upgrade, payed twice the cost of the new T5 version ....

Regards (and excuse my poor english)

[Zubersoft]

I can't control pricing of upgrades at that level due to the way the app stores work. I can only set a fixed price for a product - I can't provide different upgrade costs from different versions or do any special discounts for existing users. That's why I have to set a limit for the discount period.

This upgrade process isn't going to be the norm. I have no plans to ever rewrite MobileSheets from the ground up again. There isn't going to be a version 6 that I then turn into MobileSheetsProPlus or anything silly like that. There are going to be lots of small, more frequent updates that add new functionality or fix bugs - basically what you expect from most apps. I'm not going to charge for those updates.

I understand that I shouldn't mislead new users - I updated the posts to no longer say the update would be free. Hopefully I didn't miss any other areas.

Mike

[popoff]

There is a way to do it on the market using the google play licensing service ....

http://developer.android.com/google/play...index.html

[Zubersoft]

I already use Google Play Licensing to validate purchases. The library is designed as a way to battle piracy, and has nothing to do with the actual transactions on Google Play. Unless you want a subscription based model, I do not have control over the cost of updates. If I set up my own licensing server, and managed transactions myself, I could do this, but I don't have the resources to tackle that right now.

[miles_muso]

Wow! I can't believe this thread has gone to 4 pages! Here's my ten-cent's-worth:
Mike has said the price for the new version is going to be around $12. I'm guessing that most users of MS are at least semi-pro musicians, and find it a valuable, time-saving, lugging-loads-of-books-around-saving, well-designed, user-friendly app.
Is anybody SERIOUSLY thinking "Well, I won't buy the new version if it's $12, but I will if I get an upgrade price of $8? You're basing your decision on a difference of four measly bucks? Come on, guys, get real! How about we all decide to have one less JD and coke at the next gig and spend what we save on a new version of the app instead?
I remember the days when there were no Android/Apple apps, and we had to pay hundreds of dollars/pounds for a application that would run on a PC platform. And then we had to pay almost the same again for an upgrade.
I honestly think that most users will gladly pay the price of a couple of beers for an app they use regularly, especially professionally. If people are seriously worried about the price, then they've really not understood how much time and effort has gone into the development of this app.
I for one have spent WELL over $12 on buying power-ups for Bejewelled Blitz and other in-app purchases. I know which is worth more to me. How about you?

[popoff]

The upgrade price often try to don't stop current sales. Think about someone that need to use now MS and know that the new "non upgradeable" version will be out in one or two months. ¿wait or purchase?

For many people at this forum using MS over a year, the cost of it is amortized. But for someone that bougth the app last month, obviously no.

And again, the problem no is 4 or 10 bucks. The problem is that when an user bougth something and 1 or 2 months after there is no updates/support on it, the user have a "bad feeling" about the future of the product. The price isn't a big deal.

[Andrew9999]

As a software publisher myself I've always found the most successful approach has been to offer buyers who recently bought v4 a free upgrade to v5 (so they don't feel cheated or put off buying waiting for v5), and then simply charge everyone else a flat upgrade fee for v5. I wouldn't make the upgrade fee too small either - in effect this is your software maintenance charge, and that can typically amount to 20% or more of purchase price per year for most software... admittedly I'm more used to B2B than B2C software selling, but this works for us.

[Bud2]

That sounds very fair Mike and I am sure you will get a lot of interest no matter how you do it. As other people have said you have put a lot of time and effort into this new version so you deserve rewarding for that.
Regards,
Bill

[gman]

I have paid for phone versions then paid for products optimized for tablets. As a working pro I wouldn't mind paying for a separate phone version tweaked for the small screen. For many of us it would be an add on well worth it. Possibly sell the optimized phone version for less since it typically would not be used for loading songs, editing etc. I am already thinking about a phablet to replace my S2. Anything smaller than 7 inch would only install on phone. If you charged $8 for phone and 10 per cent of tablet users opted fof this it would be significantly more revenue for little work. I already like 4 on the phone with a few issues.

Gman Stl,

[Beemer]

I have paid for phone versions then paid for products optimized for tablets. As a working pro I wouldn't mind paying for a separate phone version tweaked for the small screen. For many of us it would be an add on well worth it. Possibly sell the optimized phone version for less since it typically would not be used for loading songs, editing etc. I am already thinking about a phablet to replace my S2. Anything smaller than 7 inch would only install on phone. If you charged $8 for phone and 10 per cent of tablet users opted fof this it would be significantly more revenue for little work. I already like 4 on the phone with a few issues.

Gman Stl,

Hello Mike,

Forum newbie here so although i have read this thread I'm not aware of just when I might be able to buy MS Pro V5? I'm currently using MusicReader on PC but despite the authors promises, now over a year ago, of an Android version there is nothing in sight.

If I should be looking elsewhere in this forum then I'll be grateful for directions.

Ian

[banjoman]

As a general expectation, I would be quite offended to have to pay for an upgrade on an app, especially if (as with MobileSheets), I had only recently started using it. I voted in the poll for free upgrade (and cannot now change that vote!)

However, because I have been following news of v5 on the Forum, and understand the work and commitment going on here, I would now be willing to buy the upgrade as a new product. I don't favour a subscription, I rather think that amatuer/casual users like myself might be put off by having to pay regularly for something they use fairly occasionally or at least were not too dependent upon.

It certainly is an app that, for me, provides the perfect way to store lyric sheets and music scores digitally and use them in a performing situation. And v5 looks even better, so I am looking forward to using that.