At 02:59 PM 11/15/01 -0500, Sean James wrote: >Say no more! It's as if Altium (and other big CAD software makers) are >penalizing the people who are utilizing their software. I wouldn't be >surprised if the future issues of Protel will have *cracks* available on the >Internet. I've run into the same situation, you have to upgrade your >software, but ALAS, the service contract has expired.
Actually, the ATS FAQ does make a few things clear. The upgrade price from 99SE to the next version has not been set (or at least is not being announced at this time), as I had reported from Altium USA sales. However, there remains an anomaly which I have described previously. It is in these three pieces of information from Altium: I have purchased a Protel 99 SE Full Suite since October 1st 2001. When will I receive confirmation of my ATS membership? As the purchaser of a Protel 99 SE full suite (since October 1st, 2001) you are entitled to 12-months free ATS membership. [...] Can I buy ATS membership for my Protel 99 SE license purchased prior to October 1st 2001? You do not need to purchase ATS for existing Protel 99 SE licenses � you will continue to receive ATS-level support and technical resources for your license. When you upgrade from Protel 99 SE to the next version of Protel* you will then receive 12-months free ATS membership as part of your upgrade. How much does ATS cost for Protel products? 12-months ATS membership is provided free with all Protel full suite upgrades and new licenses. After the initial 12-month free membership the annual renewal cost is US $1,995. Since July 1, the upgrade price for Protel 98 to Protel 99 has been $1995. What Protel has now done is to toss in the next upgrade free to those who upgrade from 98 to 99 (or buy new or upgrade from an earlier version). We who upgraded before October 1 will not get the free upgrade. If the upgrade price is on the order of the $995 that was expected at one time, this will be reasonable. However, $1995 *per year* represents as much as a tripling of the historical effective Protel maintenance pricing. If the pricing remains within reason, I do agree that the ATS system could have its superior aspects, and the FAQ addresses many of the issues which we might have with ATS. If service improves, if we don't have to wait for the next major upgrade for major tools to be released or improved, if our productivity improves substantially, this increased cost might be justified for some of us. Others will bail, and it is going to be more difficult to sell, I predict. Protel's current maintenance/upgrade system has been a strong selling point. Jumping from that to something close to double the industry standard maintenance cost is, I think, quite an enormous change. Right now $1995 for ATS for one year for a Protel 98 upgrader is a reasonably good deal, a better deal than was available before October 1. If the upgrade for 99SE to the next release, however, is $1995, Altium would be offering us zero value for our $695-$995-$1495-$1995 upgrade from P98 to P99-- depending on when we did it -- that we made to 99SE prior to October 1. That seems unlikely. If the initial P99-P2002 upgrade is $995, that will be in line with historical upgrade pricing for a version upgrade, and it will have been a low yearly cost for us, perhaps $500 per year. But the next year will be quadruple that. Protel can easily remedy this by lowering ATS pricing beyond the current year. It is reasonable for Protel to expect, with an improved and more reliable revenue stream, that it will be able to deliver improved quality. Quadrupling the quality.... not likely. Since ATS is not now offered for current 99SE licensees, it makes sense to talk about $1995 as the ATS cost *at this time*, since that is the minimum that an older licensee, who becomes eligible to receive the latest revision through it, will pay. If, upon the release of P2002, Protel lowers the ATS *renewal cost* to $995 per year, I think it is likely to be and to be perceived as a good value. P98 upgraders who wait beyond an announced deadline to upgrade might then pay $2495 or $2995 for ATS, etc. Further, the problem faced by those who feel they cannot afford ATS will be ameliorated if Altium does not severely penalize late adopters. It is severe to require those who have not paid maintenance to pay *all* the "delinquent" maintenance costs. Based on Protel history, I'd expect that jumping onto ATS late will be more expensive than simply paying the current year of ATS, and less expensive than paying all the back payments. One does not want to make it so expensive for an earlier licensee to remain in the Protel family that they are motivated to go elsewhere. [EMAIL PROTECTED] Abdulrahman Lomax Easthampton, Massachusetts USA * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To post a message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * To leave this list visit: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/leave.html * * Contact the list manager: * mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] * * Forum Guidelines Rules: * http://www.techservinc.com/protelusers/forumrules.html * * Browse or Search previous postings: * http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
