Dear Paizo,
thank you for the marketing email and the free "Legacy of Fire Guide" PDF. You invite me to take out a subscription. This I will gladly do, as soon as you offer me a PDF-only subscription. I am happy and accustomed to working with electronic media, and see no reason to pay for you to print something out for me and then ship it half way around the world at my expense.
Yours,
Potential Subscriber
Dear Paizo,
thank you for the marketing email and the free "Legacy of Fire Guide" PDF. You invite me to take out a subscription. This I will gladly do, as soon as you offer me a PDF-only subscription. I am happy and accustomed to working with electronic media, and see no reason to pay for you to print something out for me and then ship it half way around the world at my expense.
Yours,
Potential Subscriber
I'd prefer a PDF only option myself, but I think we're in the minority. On the other hand, how hard would it be to set up?
I love the idea of a PDF-only subscription. I own the Rise of the Runelords as PDFs and started running the AP last week (I've been meaning to start it for months now). I will check Legacy of Fire, however I do not plan on getting it in any other format than PDF. Two reasons : One, ecological, I do not need to use trees and fuel to get the adventures and run them. Two, the shipping costs from Paizo to Canada have become too expensive for my wallet. I prefer to do electronic business with them from now on.
I'd prefer a PDF only option myself, but I think we're in the minority. On the other hand, how hard would it be to set up?Dear Paizo,
thank you for the marketing email and the free "Legacy of Fire Guide" PDF. You invite me to take out a subscription. This I will gladly do, as soon as you offer me a PDF-only subscription. I am happy and accustomed to working with electronic media, and see no reason to pay for you to print something out for me and then ship it half way around the world at my expense.
Yours,
Potential Subscriber
The problem from their end might be in splitting their market.
Essentially the problem comes in when they offer a subscription only PDF - suddenly half their customer base goes for that option. So far so good as PDFs are nearly free to make. Were the problem comes in is that they still have to print out the non-PDF version and now they need a lot less of them, to the point where they are potentially loosing money on each one.
However half their audience is pretty hard core about having a dead tree format so they stand to loose huge numbers of them if they don't keep providing them a physical book, they can't jack up the price as its already a pretty expensive - quite possibly they are one of only a tiny number of company's in the industry that can get away with a subscription at this price - fanatically loyal customer bases are hard to come by after all.
Hence I suspect doing a PDF subscription is technically not that hard - but figuring out how to do it so they don't lose money out of the deal is much more difficult since it'll probably ultimately loose them money if it eats away at their dead tree format subscription base to any significant degree.
Oh yeah and its hard on the FLGS which could mean some FLGS choosing not to carry their product which might mean that getting the word out there about Pathfinder is that much more difficult.
I'm also Canadian, and the shipping costs (and sometimes foreign exchange costs) pretty much prevent me from buying Paizo stuff from anywhere other than Amazon.ca.
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies of the same modules from Amazon.
which is by design so they don't alienate the FLGS
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies of the same modules from Amazon.
Which FLGS sells .pdf files? Note that the .pdf files are already priced lower than the cover price for the hard copy, so there's already price competition between the two.
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies from Amazon.
Thats always the case.
You'll note this exact same effect in the entire RPG industry. Book industry as well for that matter. The most expensive place to buy a product is often the products creators. Whats actually happening is that the creator of a product has to offer all the other sellers in the industry (Amazon, the FLGs etc.) a discount from the cover price (this is their margin; the profit that the store gets for selling the product). Thing is you can't then go and discount your own product (outside of special deals or sales etc.) because you'll piss off all the people you sell the product too (if you say X is the cover price then X has to be what you sell the product for after all). Everyone else in the industry is, however, free to sell for less and just make a smaller percentage on their margin.
You'll note this in the Paizo store - check out any product that Paizo does not make and you'll see that it'll have the cover (or list) price and a slash through it with a 'Paizo' price beside or below that which is a bit cheaper. However this does not happen with actual Paizo products (unless its some kind of a big sale) - with Paizo products there is just the list price.
Thats always the case.
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies from Amazon.
In every case, ordering a .pdf file from the creator is more expensive than ordering a hard copy from Amazon? Admittedly, most of the .pdfs I buy (from DriveThruRPG, say) don't have a hard copy version that I can compare with, but that doesn't sound right.
Comparing hard copy to hard copy, I can understand. But a .pdf and a book are not fungible.
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I would never switch to the PDF subscription so creating one would not sway me. I think if they had the option of a subscription at the $13.99 apiece with out the 30% discount for the Adventure path would be a good idea. Really the book subscription at 19.99 with the 30% discount is only a little more if you don't count shipping so I don't think too many people would switch.
Creative Director
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What Jeremy said. It's the way business works.
As for a PDF only subscription, I'll look into it but since Paizo's primarily a print company (call us old-fashioned or stubborn or whatever), there are various reasons we haven't done a PDF subscription yet. Playing nice with friendly local game stores and our distributors is one of the biggest reasons, though.
Thats always the case.
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies from Amazon.
It took me about 3 minutes to find a counter-example:
Mutants & Masterminds, 2nd editionAmazon.ca book price: $30.81 CAD (+ possible shipping costs + tax)
Green Ronin .pdf price: $20.00 USD
Those prices make much more sense to me.
What Jeremy said. It's the way business works.
As for a PDF only subscription, I'll look into it but since Paizo's primarily a print company (call us old-fashioned or stubborn or whatever), there are various reasons we haven't done a PDF subscription yet. Playing nice with friendly local game stores and our distributors is one of the biggest reasons, though.
I'd suggest that actually you're primarily a content company. It's the content that I will pay for. Paper/pdf is just a means of delivering that content.
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Not that I'm hooked on Pathfinder, I'll probably buy most of the PDFs. I don't see a real advantage to a PDF subscription unless there was a discounted rate for doing so. One of the advantages to PDFs is the ability to buy whenever I want (even if it's out of print), and if there's something I'm not crazy about I can skip it.
Given a choice of only having one, I much prefer PDFs due to:
1. Instant Gratification in being able to read immediately
2. Full text search
3. PDFs are generally available at a lower price point
4. My wife thinks I'm doing work rather than reading gaming stuff when I'm behind my laptop. ;-)
5. No chance of it getting destroyed or damaged by the children.
The AP subscription was too good a deal to pass up, however. And it is nicer to have a copy of whatever I'm trying to run, and that I'm looking forward to adding them to my gaming shelf. (Looking at multi page maps in PDFs does stink.)
There will be things I will want a hardcover of, like the Rulebook - and I think it's great that Paizo often offers a PDF as a supplement to a print offer.
BTW: Thanks very much for the Legacy of Fire players guide.
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My problem is I want both, but the cost of shipping to Canada makes the whole subscription thing less then appealing, so I can buy a hard copy from a local gaming store, and then buy a download copy and pay full price twice ): At least a PDF subscription would allow me a discount on my second copy.
Or stick some sort of scratch off code inside the hard copies?
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Chief Creative Officer, Publisher
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We've toyed with the idea of a PDF-only subscription numerous times, and it's a strong enough idea that it's never fallen completely off the table, even though numerous reservations abound.
The simple fact of the matter is that the more subscribers to the hard copy Pathfinder we have, the more we can afford to print, thus lowering the per-unit cost per book. Pathfinder is already underpriced relative to comparable products in the industry, so it's important that we keep the per-unit print cost as low as possible while still being able to deliver the high-quality product Pathfinder readers have come to appreciate and expect.
It's an open question, of course, whether a PDF-only subscription would cut into the print subscriber numbers. I think if it was cheap enough that perhaps it would. And that's just not something that makes us very comfortable at the moment.
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My problem is I want both, but the cost of shipping to Canada makes the whole subscription thing less then appealing, so I can buy a hard copy from a local gaming store, and then buy a download copy and pay full price twice ): At least a PDF subscription would allow me a discount on my second copy.
Or stick some sort of scratch off code inside the hard copies?
For those of you who have never ordered outside of their own country before, there is this lovely thing that some shipping companies do called screwing you. Oh wait brokerage, basically you buy a product, lets say it costs $40 USD. You then pay another 10 USD for international shipping, because lets face it, it cost more to go further. Then when the product arrives, you pay local sales tax, also know as import duty, so lets call that another 6 CAD. So not you've paid 60 CAD for a something that should be $40, but no one sells in your country. But I'm okay with the extra 50% the real kick in the teeth is when the shipping company that you have ready paid $10 dollars to once, asks for another 10 dollars. Why, because they brought it across the boarder for you, as if moving parcels wasn't something they were used to doing? A full 25% extra just for being them.
So for us canucks, ordering online from the US is a something done only when we absolutely have to, and preferably on larger orders as the nut kicking fee is usually flat. So subscriptions just don't work well ):
Sorry this wasn't a rant at Paizo, or any other US retailer, mostly just at Fedex and UPS who are a bunch of crooks. USPS on the other hand is less so.
Get Real - I had more stuff damaged by USPS than any other carrier. And far as speed goes, USPS isn't even close not mention a practically useless tracking system.
Contributor
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Also Canadian, also had to cancel my hardcopy subscription due to shipping increases (the vagaries of the dollar don't help either) and now order from Amazon.ca or buy at my FLGS. I really miss having a pdf as well, since I tend to read hard copy and then print the pages I need for handouts and stat blocks. If I could get a pdf subscription for cheaper than I pay Amazon, I'd snap it up in a heartbeat!
EDIT: Also, I'll always take USPS over UPS for stuff from the states. I've been burned by brokerage fees that were twice the cost of the item I had ordered, more than once.
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Get Real - I had more stuff damaged by USPS than any other carrier. And far as speed goes, USPS isn't even close not mention a practically useless tracking system.
But when it comes to something that is already going to take an age and a day to reach me here in the north, I'd rather not pay through the teeth to get it.
An alternative would be to receive the products on a quarterly basis, but that would seriously increase the organizational efforts in the shipping department. Just have a box marked Galnorag and throw one of each thing in the box, once the box gets to heavy to easily lift, ship it :)
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Also a Canadian, but on the west coast. Shipping as a supersubscriber is very reasonable (to Vancouver), and the USPS hasn't screwed me with border charges the way UPS does.
Sometimes I get the shipment in a box (comes through fine) sometimes it comes in a cardboard envelope (corners of the envelope get pretty banged up/ torn, haven't had a book damaged yet though). Shipping time is pretty good too, usually 7 days after I get the pdf.
Now that I think about it dropping my planet stories subscription relegated me back to cardboard envelope status. So if your corners are getting banged up, add a planet stories sub :)
Another vote for a PDF-only subscription.
I'll admit that if it was an option, I would cancel my current paper+PDF subscriptions and get the PDF one (but I would still get the paper books from a local shop, Amazon or another source cheaper [postage + taxes] than Paizo).
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I'd also be concerned about the effect on the FLGS and their reaction to it, at least while they still exist.
Myself, though, I need pdf and paper, so from the selfish perspective the current subscription arrangement suits me just fine. If they did something that made the hard-copy version more expensive, then clearly this would not meet with my approval and as I am the Most Important Person in the World, I declare the debate over.
If you get a subscription, you get the pdfs for free. So why not take the hard copy you don't want and sell it to a friend, or on ebay, or to the kid down the street? You will still have your pdf, and after selling the hard copy, you will have it a huge discount!
If you get a subscription, you get the pdfs for free. So why not take the hard copy you don't want and sell it to a friend, or on ebay, or to the kid down the street? You will still have your pdf, and after selling the hard copy, you will have it a huge discount!
Because a) after paying shipping costs to eastern europe and import duties, it will be hugely expensive and b) I rarely remain at the same address for more than 3 months, and would likely have to spend all my time chasing lost mail.
I don't want something on paper. I have no need for something on paper. I would never buy it on paper. PDFs are perfect for me. Paizo produces them anyway. I am prepared to pay a reasonable sum for them. It would seem to be win/win if they would sell the damned things to me by subscription!
I hope the final Pathfinder rulebook will be available as a PDF. If so, I will definately buy it. If not.... maybe I'll just make do with whatever the equivalent of the SRD is.
I think a lot of people on these forums have a book fetish. Erik styles himself "publisher" and seems to love old pulp books and magazines. I've seen people posting in these forums about loving the smell and texture of paper and ink. Fair enough - that's their preference. I, on the other hand, couldn't care less for dead trees, and want everything electronically. I suspect Paizo could cater for both.
If you get a subscription, you get the pdfs for free. So why not take the hard copy you don't want and sell it to a friend, or on ebay, or to the kid down the street? You will still have your pdf, and after selling the hard copy, you will have it a huge discount!
Why not cut out the middlemen (a.k.a. the U.S. Postal Service and the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency)? Maybe Paizo could sell the hard copy to the kid down the street and just send me the .pdf at a huge discount. Same result, but with less wasted shipping and import fees.
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Director of Brand Strategy
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Given Paizo's business considerations, I think that, were this option available, it would probably serve everyone best if it were limited to international clients. Most of the comments asking for a pdf sub are from places where the shipping of dead tree material is their main detractor. Since product is shipped in bulk to overseas FLGSs, Amazon.whatever, and other book stores, these distributors aren't suffering the same way the direct customers are when it comes to shipping. That said, I don't see why someone who wants just pdf's can't just manually buy all the pdfs when they come out. It's cheaper than buying all the printed books.
I'm also Canadian, and the shipping costs (and sometimes foreign exchange costs) pretty much prevent me from buying Paizo stuff from anywhere other than Amazon.ca.
Yep, exactly my situation too. I order my Pathfinder APs and modules exclusively from Amazon.ca, since the postage to Canada plus exchange plus sometimes border taxes and duty can make the price of a Paizo book astronomical (relatively speaking, of course). No thanks.
OTOH, I don't miss the pdfs, since pdfs suck.
(But with that said, WTF is up with (some?) non-subscribers getting free Legacy of Fire guides? Boo-urns!) ;)
Thats always the case.
I also mentioned in another thread that buying the PDFs for an adventure path from Paizo is more expensive than buying hard copies from Amazon.In every case, ordering a .pdf file from the creator is more expensive than ordering a hard copy from Amazon? Admittedly, most of the .pdfs I buy (from DriveThruRPG, say) don't have a hard copy version that I can compare with, but that doesn't sound right.
Comparing hard copy to hard copy, I can understand. But a .pdf and a book are not fungible.
Yeah I was thinking like for like when I wrote that though the basics of the industry still answer why its possible for Amazon to sell a hard copy for less then the producer might sell a PDF for - essentially Amazon tends to take a huge hit on their margin and make up for it through sheer number of sales.
Hence it may be that if Paizo undercuts their hardcover sales by enough beat Amazon they'll manage to get back into a situation where they have essentially split their market as well as angering the FLGS. This is a bigger deal for Paizo then Green Ronin in all likelihood because Paizo is trying to create a brand while Green Ronin probably concentrates more on a 90 day method of sales - they do the vast majority of their sales in the first 90 days of the products release and very few sales after that essentially. While a Pathfinder Monster Manual is likely supposed to keep selling passably well for years - so long as the FLGS and such keep stocking it on the shelves.
It's an open question, of course, whether a PDF-only subscription would cut into the print subscriber numbers. I think if it was cheap enough that perhaps it would. And that's just not something that makes us very comfortable at the moment.
I don't understand this part. Certainly you have dealt with problems like this before and I would suspect have done so analytically. You would need to develop some models that let you plug in different assumptions for pdf price - sales and reduction in hard copy sales and then do some market research. Making a fairly educated determination of what price point maximizes revenues becomes easier at that point.
I can understand if you decide not to do so for various reasons but I cannot for the life of me understand why would you leave things up to how comfortable everyone feels.
As for the escalation in printing costs that's much harder question to answer. An easy answer would be to set the margins for the pdf's at a point where they subsidize the printing much in the way the NYT paper version subsidizes the website. I'm not sure if this can be done in practice however.
However I do think you need to willing to change and risk alienating some current customers (which you will certainly do) in order to best serve your market.
(given time to reflect surely you would agree that paizo is content provider and not a publishing company?)
I can understand if you decide not to do so for various reasons but I cannot for the life of me understand why would you leave things up to how comfortable everyone feels.
Sometimes your gut has more sense than some guy who whips up numbers for you...
However I do think you need to willing to change and risk alienating some current customers (which you will certainly do) in order to best serve your market.
Not before they have determined that they will, in fact, best serve their market this way. Otherwise they just kicked loyal customers (who helped making it possible for them to survive long enough to get at this point) in the nads because you felt like it.
Call me selfish, but I don't want to go through this again. The last time isn't long enough ago, and, frankly, Paizo doesn't seem like the kind of company who does that.
Because a) after paying shipping costs to eastern europe and import duties, it will be hugely expensive
Is it really that bad? I think with their shipping discounts for international shipments, the shipping costs aren't that bad, and unless I remember things incorrectly, I never paid duty for any subscription shipment. Other orders (containing minis and battlemats and the like) yes, but not shipments containing only books.
I hope the final Pathfinder rulebook will be available as a PDF.
Why should it be different from practically everything else they produced as Pathfinder products?
I think a lot of people on these forums have a book fetish.
Count me in. I don't smell them or anything, and I think PDFs are awesome, but for me they cannot replace a real book, just supplement it.
I love PDFs for my RPG sessions and preparations (since they have full text search capability and don't take up space on the table - well, beyond the lap', but that thing's on, anyway) but to really read a book, I need a print version. One I can hold in hands when I read it. One I can read lying in bed, or sitting on the Throne.
OT:
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As for the escalation in printing costs that's much harder question to answer. An easy answer would be to set the margins for the pdf's at a point where they subsidize the printing much in the way the NYT paper version subsidizes the website. I'm not sure if this can be done in practice however.
The NYT may be a bad example, as, um, they're losing money hand over fist...
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Creative Director
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I hope the final Pathfinder rulebook will be available as a PDF. If so, I will definately buy it. If not.... maybe I'll just make do with whatever the equivalent of the SRD is.
It will be available in PDF form.
I think a lot of people on these forums have a book fetish. Erik styles himself "publisher" and seems to love old pulp books and magazines. I've seen people posting in these forums about loving the smell and texture of paper and ink. Fair enough - that's their preference. I, on the other hand, couldn't care less for dead trees, and want everything electronically. I suspect Paizo could cater for both.
I fully admit that I have a book obsession. I love books. I buy books that I know I'll probably never read, in fact, and given the choice, vastly prefer reading something in print than on a screen. A lot of folks here at Paizo feel the same.
And yes... "Fetish" isn't the right word to use... unless you're trying to cause trouble and rile up those of use who prefer print over PDF.
We CAN serve both PDF and print. We're doing that now. There's a lot more complications to the question of PDF subscriptions than one might think though. When the time is right for Paizo to offer PDF subscriptions, we will. That time may be closer than any of us think. It also might NEVER come. It IS something we periodically revisit though.
Sometimes your gut has more sense than some guy who whips up numbers for you...
This type of thinking is thankfully being used in business less and less. Information generated is only as good and the information collected, so it's true that if for example paizo were to use poorly collected or guesses in determining what price pdf's should be sold at the results would not be useful or worse harmful. But that is not the fault of the model but rather that of the faulty information and those who relied on it.
I'm not saying that selling a pdf only subscription is in the end a good idea. What I am saying is that if this issue has been important enough to discuss multiple times then perhaps it is time to examine it in a systematic and logical way. The outcome may very well be that selling a pdf only subscription is not a +ev decision. or it may turn out that there is not enough information available and they need to do more research, or there could be a price point where selling is +ev. Either isn't it much better to know why you are making a decision and what information and assumptions you used to arrive at it, rather than relying on a "gut" feeling?
Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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If you get a subscription, you get the pdfs for free. So why not take the hard copy you don't want and sell it to a friend, or on ebay, or to the kid down the street? You will still have your pdf, and after selling the hard copy, you will have it a huge discount!Because a) after paying shipping costs to eastern europe and import duties, it will be hugely expensive and b) I rarely remain at the same address for more than 3 months, and would likely have to spend all my time chasing lost mail.
Maybe you could split a subscription with someone. Find a US person that just wants the books and split the cost of the subscription between the two of you. Put that person's address down for the books and put your address down for the pdfs.
Or, if you would be willing to pay the full subscription price just to get the pdfs, you could always send the hard copies to a US library or something.
Just some thoughts. I feel your pain, the pdfs are the primary reason I am a subscriber.
As for the escalation in printing costs that's much harder question to answer. An easy answer would be to set the margins for the pdf's at a point where they subsidize the printing much in the way the NYT paper version subsidizes the website. I'm not sure if this can be done in practice however.The NYT may be a bad example, as, um, they're losing money hand over fist...
If we assume that people who are not reading the website are now not paying for a subscription that they other would then it is an even better example! (in reality it is much much more complicated and you have to account for competitor websites)
NYT hardcopy margins is supposed to subsidize the free online content.
In doing so NYT is losing money.
Therefore if we limit the discussion to these variables, offering free online content is -EV and therefore should not be done.
The decision making process (which is all I am arguing for) still works
Maybe you could split a subscription with someone. Find a US person that just wants the books and split the cost of the subscription between the two of you. Put that person's address down for the books and put your address down for the pdfs.Isn't the person who is the registered subscriber then selling paizo's intellectual property at a profit?
paizo for better or for worse, sells one product (the hardcopy and pdf bundled together) I don't think they intend for that product to be broken apart and sold in a secondary market.
You're heart is in the right place but I would think this would be a very slippery slope ripe for abuse.
I also prefer pdf's, due to the geographical anomoly of the middle of nowhere that I live in. I don't have a flgs within an hour or so of where I'm at. I have never had problem of getting the pdf's I want, and I dont have a problem with the prices either, so I don't see the need for a subscription.
I'm sorry if I'm coming off as confrontational. I am just passionate about using analytical decision making models (former pro poker player, not work in finance) to make business decisions. No offense intended to anyone
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Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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I'm no expert, but I think the first sale doctrine you folks in the US have covers this. Provided you aren't copying the pdf.
You're heart is in the right place but I would think this would be a very slippery slope ripe for abuse.
Yeah, the first sale doctrine prohibits companies from putting conditions on the resales of their products. There's no problem of me buying and reselling my paizo books; heck, that's what a distributor does. The bundling doesn't change the analysis as far as I know.
I'm Canadian. Often, once all the shipping, exchange rate, possible duty, etc. is factored in, only about half of the cost of my "subscription" actually goes to Paizo - the rest goes to the various middlemen. I could shave some dollars off by ordering from Amazon or Chapters online, but I do want to support Paizo, and I'm afraid that with my schedule, I'd start missing products; I do reserve the Chronicles products to get from my FLGS. In short, I understand the concern about how shipping inflates the cost quite well.
So forgive me if I'm being obtuse, but couldn't you get the subscription, but tell Paizo NOT to ship you the print product? You would get the pdf, which is all you care about, and for quite a bit less than if the product was sent to you. You wouldn't get a "discount" from Paizo, but since you're interested in content, and the effort that they went to to create the content for you is no different whether its printed or pdf, you really should have no complaint. Unless, of course, its not really the mode of the content, but really that you just want it for cheaper. If that's the case, then never mind.
How about a selection box that only activates for those whose mailing address indicates an expensive shipping area - Canada and overseas, where ever there is a massive shipping and currency exchange expense. That box provides the option to get a PDF-only subscription saving dead tree and other costs while retaining the revenue stream from the subscribers. I would frankly expect this to increase subscription revenues, and Paizo would still know how many print copies they have to make for their print runs.
It sounds a lot like the solid majority of PDF-only requesters are overseas. Us domestics would have to suck up the dual-copy format ... [sarcasm] what a tragic shame [/sarcasm].
Paizo would, of course, retain the right to switch the option off at any time if it is proving to be a disaster, stating so right on the sub box option and with each notification e-mail sent.
Just sayin'...
How about a selection box that only activates for those whose mailing address indicates an expensive shipping area - Canada and overseas, where ever there is a massive shipping and currency exchange expense. That box provides the option to get a PDF-only subscription saving dead tree and other costs while retaining the revenue stream from the subscribers.
You're missing my point a little bit. I have three ways that I can get an electronic copy of one of Paizo's adventure paths:
- Buy them from Amazon (either one at a time or once they're all in print) and scan them myself. End result -- I have physical and electronic copies of the books. Cost is around $100 CAD and Paizo has no guaranteed monthly income from me.
- Buy the .pdfs from Paizo. End result -- I have electronic copies of the books, but no physical copy. Cost is around $100 CAD and Paizo has no guaranteed monthly income from me.
- Subscribe to the adventure path and get books and .pdfs from Paizo. End result -- I have electronic and physical copies of the books. Cost is around $150 and Paizo gets a guaranteed monthly income from me.
#3 is out for me (why should I subsidize the U.S. Postal Service in order to patronize Paizo?) and obviously #1 is better than #2 in a value-for-money standpoint.
All things being equal, I'd rather give Paizo some guaranteed income in exchange for a slight price break. If I'm going to have to pay $100 anyways, why wouldn't I get a physical copy for no extra charge (in which case it hurts Paizo's profits)? So I'm kind of stuck. Maybe Paizo could put up a PayPal donations button...
How about a selection box that only activates for those whose mailing address indicates an expensive shipping area - Canada and overseas, where ever there is a massive shipping and currency exchange expense. That box provides the option to get a PDF-only subscription saving dead tree and other costs while retaining the revenue stream from the subscribers.You're missing my point a little bit. I have three ways that I can get an electronic copy of one of Paizo's adventure paths:
- Buy them from Amazon (either one at a time or once they're all in print) and scan them myself. End result -- I have physical and electronic copies of the books. Cost is around $100 CAD and Paizo has no guaranteed monthly income from me.
- Buy the .pdfs from Paizo. End result -- I have electronic copies of the books, but no physical copy. Cost is around $100 CAD and Paizo has no guaranteed monthly income from me.
- Subscribe to the adventure path and get books and .pdfs from Paizo. End result -- I have electronic and physical copies of the books. Cost is around $150 and Paizo gets a guaranteed monthly income from me.
#3 is out for me (why should I subsidize the U.S. Postal Service in order to patronize Paizo?) and obviously #1 is better than #2 in a value-for-money standpoint.All things being equal, I'd rather give Paizo some guaranteed income in exchange for a slight price break. If I'm going to have to pay $100 anyways, why wouldn't I get a physical copy for no extra charge (in which case it hurts Paizo's profits)? So I'm kind of stuck. Maybe Paizo could put up a PayPal donations button...
I was not trying to undercut Paizo's price point on purpose, although perhaps a $15 US tag per issue ($90 per 6-issue AP) would make a PDF sub worthwhile? I feel for you on paying $40 US for an issue on the sub...
I am at a loss, although it is clear from other posts that Paizo is well aware of it, just that they're not quite sure of how to go about it without cutting off thier nose to spite thier face.