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In Defense of Quicktime (4/3/98)
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The heated debate over Apple's Quicktime 3.0 license fees continues to rage; just take a look at MacInTouch's Quicktime page for a sample of the e-bile spreading over the net. Now that the most vocal detractors have had their say, we're starting to see some backlash. The MacKiDo Temple, for instance, has posted one developer's point-by-point analysis of the license fee structure, which he eventually proclaims is both "fair" and "a good value."
By and large, we agree with the author's assessment and opinions, and he makes some excellent arguments. One that we hadn't considered before was that the licensing fee of $2 to include Quicktime Pro in a shipping product is a fantastic deal for both developers and customers; developers can spend two bucks per box and label their software with a sticker that says, "Includes Quicktime Pro, a $30 value!" Unfortunately, that argument can't be used to justify the $1 fee to include regular Quicktime: a box labeled "includes Quicktime, a $0 value!" isn't much of an incentive to buy. And claiming that to waive the $1 fee, developers need only "include a movie which encourages the user to upgrade to Quicktime 3.0 Pro" is misleading-- as we've seen, it's not the inclusion of the movie that people dislike, it's the requirement to install it on the desktop every time the application is run.
We've got to believe that somewhere in there is a licensing scheme that will make money for Apple, be fair to developers, and not annoy the living bejeezus out of the end users. Our official recommendation is that the whole policy is just and fair, with the exception of the bizarre requirement that applications waiving the redistribution fee install the "Get Quicktime Pro" movie on the user's desktop every single time the software is launched. Amend that one clause to specify that the movie is installed on the desktop every time the software's installer is used, and we think Apple's got a winner.
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SceneLink (594)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 4/3/98 episode: April 3, 1998: There's something fishy about the whole Newton situation, and the roots of the conspiracy can be traced to an old AtAT cast member, back from oblivion. Meanwhile, the debate over Quicktime 3.0 licensing rages on, and Netscape vents about Microsoft in an SEC filing...
Other scenes from that episode: 593: Trust No One (4/3/98) Conspiracy Alert: Faithful viewer Ben Dyer has sharper eyes (and a more paranoid mind) than most. Consider his latest scenario: I just read today's episode and I got to the part about Planet Computing trying to get the Newton division and I had a theory: what if Planet Computing is actually the re-organization of Power Computing?... 595: Netscape's Red(mond) Ink (4/3/98) We'd have to guess that it's relatively rare for a large company to file a year-end 10-K report to the Securities and Exchange Commission with a section on competitive factors that focuses heavily on how one single corporation's actions are destroying its business...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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