@eldiabolo As I stated ALL posts will be posted from here and many other sites, unlike BOINX I am fair. I found sites all over the net just like this one where people are voicing their opinion on how this update thievery has been handled. It will be very good to post both sides from all sites because it will not take a genius to see where the majority lays.
While you are certainly entitled to your opinion, no matter how wrong it is, you will find the vast majority disagree with extreme vigor. I most definitely beg to differ with your opinion because not only is their robbing and stealing there is also deceit, and blatant venomous disregard for a loyal customer base. A customer base I might add that is all likely three quarters less than what it was. I already spent over $200 in less than 5 months for V3 so yes I do consider an additional $99 in such a short time robbery and thievery. It is very common for software creators to allow free upgrades for up to one year after the initial purchase including major version upgrades. I count my lucky stars that my company has enough traffic that many software creators trade software for a place on my site which I have been happy to do however if they are not upstanding they lose that spot forever.
I have also read many reviews on the V4 patch, I will not call it a upgrade since it simply fixes things that should have been addressed as a patch to begin with. Nevertheless the reviews are awful, the app crashes upon starting, some can’t load it at all, some are so fed up because not only were they sucked into the over priced app but it does not even work as stated. You will be happy to know among the many 1/2 stars and 1 stars there were one or two 5 stars, probably yours eh?
Like it or leave? That is what BOINX would like, that way all this will get swept under the rug… good luck with that one! I have been on the internet since the 80’s long before any GUI’s when UNIX and DOS was the only thing around and I am not going away. I have been a protector on the net all these years and I will continue to protect, warn, and voice my opinion.
You guys ARE THIEVES!.. I purchased v3 on the Canadian App Store, and NEVER saw any upgrades on it (even though you told me it was coming!)… v3 was and is a piece of $HIT and crashes, lost stuff, etc. (I TORE MY HAIR OUT ON TWO VERY GOOD MACBOOK PRO’S). I ended up purchasing PTE (PicturesToExe in case you don’t know who that is), and have been VERY happy with it (so i never did use your product for anything except wasting my time trying to get it to work!). I run PTE in a VmWare Fusion VM on my MAC’s and it runs 1000x better than your $HIT. You don’t deserve any more business, and you OWE it to your customers to upgrade them FREE for v4. I hope this comment goes out there, and SAVES people the distress of dealing with you guys (and your support in trying to resolve my issues was just as bad, i may add)… DO NOT BUY THIS @RAP, IT IS $HIT).
Just to be fair I have to confess, that boinx has sent me a free update key for version 4 today ( I bought version 3 after September, 09, 2012).
Nevertheless I’m still cheesed with the upgrade policy for you other guys and think, that boinx deserves an impressive shitstorm.
Otherwise they will try to fool us again with version 5 (or even earlier).
Wow…I just got the ‘upgrade’ notice and let me add my voice to the choir scream unfair and downright thievery. I spent BIG $ on v3 pro less than 6 months ago…When I emailed you about some of my frustrations, you indicated that v4 “was close to being finished” that would resolve my problem…I will have see if I still have your email…I’m not sure you said it would be free upgrade or not…Regardless, I bought v4 on the hopes v4 would be out with in a few months…needless to say it was more than a few months…Now its here and its an additional $99! WTF…Are you seriously? Do you care at all about your existing customer base? You are screwing the pooch here and I urge you to reconsider your policy towards upgrades. Why are you not even responding to any of these posts? Shame on you.
My name is Megan – I’m dealing with Boinx upgrade inquiries personally. Please contact me directly at megan@boinx.com so we can schedule a time to chat about the new price policy. Thanks and have a great weekend!
This pricing upgrade greed is a sad move, your are pushing loyal customers to other programs who may be less grasping. As a Apple user since 1990 I have watched that company go from the designers friend to the new Microsoft bully, to use their tactics as an excuse to rip off customers is in excusable.
FM4 is a huge upgrade. I can only feel sorry for the developers who are reading all the whining and “outrage” over charging a fair price for their product. Let me be the voice in the wilderness: Thanks for FotoMagico, we love it and while $99 is not trivial, I think it’s fair.
If you don’t want v4, don’t buy it. FM3 is still plenty powerful and still works, right? I don’t understand the outrage. Are you paid for the work you do? If you’re like me and make a living from the images I make, this is a tool worth every penny.
Allan, Well said and I just posted a note on “Exact slide from slide to slide”. I was self employed in the service business for around 40 years and in all fairness unless a person has experienced being self-employed and run a business and have the understanding of expenses versus profit isn’t usually well understood. Bill
Thank you all for the feedback you’ve provided since the launch of FotoMagico 4, both the good and the bad. I apologize for the delayed response regarding concerns over the new upgrade price, but want you to know we’ve been listening. We felt the need to speak directly with as many customers as possible to fully understand all aspects of your concerns and frustrations. After reaching out and talking to many who voiced their complaints, I believe I can now post a thoughtful response that will hopefully explain the reasons why we had to go down this path.
As you know, Boinx Software develops for the Mac platform only. As a Mac-only developer, it is vital for our business to participate in the Mac App Store. In doing so, we have to adhere to App Store rules - two of which significantly alter how we price our products and communicate with our customers.
The App Store only allows one price for the product. This means we cannot offer discounts to buyers of previous products.
The App Store does not provide us with customer information (no names or emails). Nor are we allowed to implement an activation scheme within our software that would have customers register with us directly.
When we first moved to the Mac App Store for version 3 of FotoMagico, providing an upgrade price was not an issue. We had customer contact information and could offer ALL existing customers a special upgrade price by directing you to a non-App Store site with a special upgrade price.
As we moved forward with version 3 of FotoMagico, the majority of new sales went through the Mac App Store. Since we cannot collect or verify software use for the majority of version 3 users, offering a separate upgrade price was not an option. We’ve thought long and hard about how we can refund existing customers for the upgrade cost, but have yet to find a way that won’t compromise the business or alienate a large group of existing customers.
We absolutely care about our customers and are very proud of the work you do with our products. The Boinx team has spent the last three years working hard to create a FotoMagico version 4 release that would live up to your expectations. We sincerely regret the ill feelings the new pricing policy has caused some of you, but we must adapt to the changes sweeping through the software industry in order to survive as a company. We value all of your business and urge you to continue to reach out to us with your feedback, questions and concerns.
So, so disappointed.
I paid a LOT of money for a multi licence of version 3 only to find now it is a ‘stale mate’. Your explanation for the new pricing is just a cop out. The ill feeling is not from a few but probably the majority of your existing customers. These are the people who have helped make the software a sucess and have been the main promoters of it. Without loyalty you have no future especially when there are so many other products on the market for a LOT less. Remember too that Mac users can also run Windows on their computers which gives us an even wider choice of products. Version 3 has had many bugs and still has but we have stuck by you and for what???
Granted we have had all the free upgrades to date but many of them were bug fixes and our feedback has helped with those fixes. We would not be averse to a further payment for an upgrade but to be told that we must now pay full price again and be a NEW customer to get version 4 or stay in the past on version 3 is
so, so disappointing.
How about this as a possible solution, all users who purchased through the App Store can provide proof of purchase by looking in their account history, with this proof or purchase emailed to Boinx an app store gift voucher could be sent out to be used for purchasing the new version. It might be worth talking with Apple as well as they do in some cases offer refunds
Just some thoughts, a good way to get customers back onboard with a great product
@djwphoto: First of all, I am glad that you think FotoMagico is a great product.
Your suggestions were among the things we considered before we settled on the current course of action. Here is why we had to decide against this:
It’s impossible to handle thousands of gift vouchers in hundreds of countries around the world. You can only purchase gift vouchers in the local App Store with a local credit card. Try to get a credit card in a foreign country…
It would also be very easy for a bunch of kids to open a couple of accounts and send in photoshopped “proof of purchases” in order to get a voucher which they could use to buy anything at the App Store. This would be a huge financial risk that we can not afford.
Regarding talking to Apple: Apple is not going to make an exception for any individual developer. They don’t want paid upgrades and that’s it.
As far as I can see, there is no other developer out there who has been able to deal with this any better than we did. If there were, we would have copied their approach.
Further to my first comment-
I purchased my v3Pro multi license from Kagi (not Apple).
Why can you not continue using Kagi to deal with payments for upgrades at an upgrade price and refer new first time customers to Apple . You could then charge the higher price which your existing customers have paid for v3.
You sell Fotomagico through Amazon and they also sell upgrades for other software so why not upgrades of Fotomagico? If Apple will not sell upgrades,use Amazon.
You must have details of existing customers as we have been getting our downloaded fixes. We click on ‘Check for update’ so you must have our IP addresses.
When you produce v5, which you probably will, the ‘new’ v4 customers will then become ex customers like the rest of us when they find that that purchase has becomes worthless too.
I have always promoted Fotomagic and persuaded a number of friends to purchase. I am now embarassed that I have persuaded them to buy a soon to be worthless product when you no longer support it as you probably will, putting all your effort into v4 and future versions.
Fotomagico has always been so much more expensive compared to other similar products and it is that fact which has made this such an issue especially for those of us who purchased the multi license pro version.
I still have hope of a solution to this before you lose most of your customer base and support.
@Oliver Here is the quick and easy way to make it fair and many other software creators use it including BOINX. Those that purchased 3 Pro via your website and NOT the App Store, like myself, you CAN still offer the upgrade price on your site. You do have all the information required from those that made that purchase on your site. Those that purchased via the App Store must play by the App Store rules.
First of all if you purchase directly from the software creators the license is limited to the amount of seats purchased. Second of all via the App Store it is allowed to put the app on as many Mac’s as one owns therefore making $99 fair.
So when purchasing software most people in their right mind have to weigh in those factors but so should the software creators. There is in fact a fair and simple way to fix this, those that purchased directly from you and not the App Store should be able to upgrade for free if within the first 6 months or year of original purchase, or a very minimal upgrade price which is how many software creators have dealt with this situation. Those that purchased from the App Store are stuck with the App Store rules.
There is also a way to keep the direct purchases verses the App Store purchases separate as well by giving those that purchased directly a license those that purchase from the App Store does not have a license key. Both versions work the same with full features, etc the only difference is the licensing policy. Many software creators use this method instead of using the App Store as a cop out.
Boinx should be VERY aware of this practice as that is how Photo Presenter has been dealt with. I originally purchased Photo Presenter via your website then 2 days later I also purchased from the App Store to take advantage of being able to put it on more than one computer. The biggest difference here is Photo Presenter I can actually use and it works whereas Fotomagico Pro 3 is so buggy I have NEVER been able use it. I spent nearly $200 on the software and never used it or produced anything on it because due to time restrictions I didn’t have time to work around the bugs.
When I purchase software I still at times will purchase directly from the creator instead of the App Store because so many creators offer free upgrades including version upgrades within one year of the original purchase. After that time the upgrade is usually depending the on the total new cost of the software anywhere between $9.99 - $29 for an upgrade.
As for the dude commenting on owning his own business and how things work, your little ditty does not hold water. I have owned my own business for a very long time and some times if you want to keep that customer you bite the bullet, even at your expense in some cases, however in this case its simply a matter of being fair.
Das ist Abzocke ersten Grades, die Leute die brav die ganzen Versionen bisher gekauft haben, und damit auch zum Erfolg von Boinx beigetragen haben werden unverschämt zur Kasse gebeten.
Man versteht schon hin und wieder junge Leute, die sich das nicht mehr gefallen lassen und sich software illegal besorgen
Ausserdem seit Ihr noch meilenweit von ProShow für Windows entfernt, gibt es leider nicht für den MAC, sonst wärt Ihr sowieso weg vom Fenster
You should get punished for your pricing policy by your existing customers and they should start looking for alternatives
Those which helped you over years to become successful (and paid for every single version ) are now treated like imbeciles
AND you are miles away from ProShow (all improvements are just features which you get there for a long time!!
Once they have a MAC version you are off anyway
Sorry, but this is not update. You either trat new customers not fair or old customers not fair. We are not equal and if Apple has any policy then skip Apple and offer updates/upgrades via Kagi as before. The price for new customers should be $139. For us who have been using FM 3 for long time it should be $99 or less. We do not care much about Apple policies or software. That’s why we came here and are not using inferior iPhoto.
Boinx definitely needs to learn about creating customer loyalty. At $49.99 I would definitely upgrade at $99 I’ll be using FotoMagico 3 Pro for many years to come without an upgrade. This is not the way to treat loyal customers.