Comments on: Motricity to Power PalmOne Software Connection

Motricity, the premier provider of mobile content to consumers, today announced it will power palmOne, Inc.'s Software Connection storefront, providing palmOne customers with an enhanced user experience and broad content catalog for palmOne devices such as Treo smartphones and Tungsten and Zire handhelds.
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Part 2

hj43 @ 4/26/2005 3:54:48 PM # Q
In the same e-mail that announced this to developers, Motricity also announced that their commission rates (on PalmGear.com and elsewhere) are now rising to a thoroughly ridiculous 40%, in addition to several additional % worth of transaction fees. For affiliate sites like this palmOne store, the rates are now 50%, so palmOne + Motricity make more money off of your purchase than the developer does.

If you're still buying software off of these sites, now would be a good time to consider switching. Take the extra minute to Google for the developer's own site, and place your order there instead of on PalmGear or Handango.

RE: Part 2
Toysoft @ 4/26/2005 7:27:27 PM # Q
I agreed. Developers are getting raped again and again from palmgear.com they dont really care about developers and doing sh*t all to promoting smaller developers.

buy from the developers directly and avoid handango and palmgear.

Boycott PalmGear!
The_Voice_of_Reason @ 4/26/2005 10:57:20 PM # Q
While I agree with avoiding sleazy sites like PalmGear and "Two Face" Kenny, the "rape" comment is a bit over the top. No one forces developers to keep paying PalmGear's extortion prices. If developers stopped whining and created their own competitive listing site, they could screw PalmGear at its own game.

PalmGear illustrates the worst features of a monopoly: Greed, Sloth, Arrogance, Indifference and Ineptitude all rolled into a single useless site. Fabulous.

Boycott PalmGear now!


------------------------
Press release: CUPERTINO, California — February 11, 2005 — Apple® announced today that Steve Jobs will begin selling his own feces to Apple Cultists beginning March 1. Apple's new iPoo™ lineup is expected to easily surpass the iPod shuffle as the company's most popular product. Yes, Apple Cultists can already easily create their own iPoo™, but feces didn't seem cool until Jobs told them it was cool. Remember, kids: the ONLY cool feces is Jobs' highly individualistic, rebellious iPoo™ (coming soon in six different colors/flavors, including the red [hematochezia] and black [melena] U2 GI bleed model)

------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------

Say hello to my little friend...

PalmSource Application Directory!
GregGaub @ 4/26/2005 10:58:05 PM # Q
Sounds like a good time for users and developers to make the switch to the PalmSource Application Directory. Devs can have whatever site listed they want, if it's a PG listing or their own fulfillment system. Users can find whatever has been listed, safe in the knowledge that the dev's chosen fulfillment method has been linked to. It's just waiting there, ready to be used. It's not as complete as PG or other sites, but it's also not leeching all the dev's hard earned money away.

-- SeaPUG: http://www.seapug.com --
RE: Part 2
GregGaub @ 4/26/2005 11:01:49 PM # Q
For those who can't find it, and for the convenience of all, here's the URL:
http://applications.palmsource.com/Software/index.asp

-- SeaPUG: http://www.seapug.com --
RE: Part 2
E Ben G @ 4/26/2005 11:31:46 PM # Q
The 'bestseller' lists on palmgear and Handango do serve an important function for newbies in providing a quick and easy way to find the most popular programs under each category. In fact this is how I found many of my favorites. The best tend to rise to the top - zLauncher is perched atop the utilities category (great program), Pocket Tunes is the bestselling music player (great program) and on and on.

So, if what you guys are saying is true about the almost unbelievable 40-50% fees, then why doesn't PIC or another site put forth a neutral list of the best programs. This would be very helpful for many new users. This is the function pocketpcmag serves for PPC users.

RE: Part 2
The_Voice_of_Reason @ 4/26/2005 11:53:35 PM # Q
So, if what you guys are saying is true about the almost unbelievable 40-50% fees, then why doesn't PIC or another site put forth a neutral list of the best programs.

The problem is achieving a consensus. Say I (or 10 people) create a listing of the "Top 100 Palm Apps" (actually already did that, by the way). In each category there are several possible choices that are all equally as "good". It all boils down to personal choice. For example, I swear by Launcher III and Launcher X as replacement launchers. But others love ZLauncher or a dozen other launchers I could name. Which is best? You really have to try them all out to know which is the best one for you. I think DateBk5 is the best PalmOS app available - period - and I'm amazed that some cretins choose Agendus over it, but again, there's no accounting for taste. Which app sells the most also often has little bearing on quality.

The Palm "Expert Guides" are an attempt to compensate for reviewer bias that encourage users to experiment on their own. But this is too much info spread out too wide to be useful for newbies to absorb. If we create a 5 page "Top 200" list arranged by category, with a one line blurb including app name, features and download site, that would probably be the best compromise. If Ryan is interested, I'm sure a few of the Palm veterans here could give him a listing of the "Top 200 Palm Apps" in, say, 20 or so overall categories (Datebook replacement, Launcher replacement, Word processor, MP3 player, Video player, Backup application, Security app, Memo pad replacement, To do list replacement, Address book replacement, Database/list application, File manager, Email app, Photo manager, Spreadsheet, Hack manager, Financial manager, Calculator replacement, Web browser, VPN application, Game, Clock, etc., etc.) Spoon feeding is the only way to eat™.


------------------------
Press release: CUPERTINO, California — February 11, 2005 — Apple® announced today that Steve Jobs will begin selling his own feces to Apple Cultists beginning March 1. Apple's new iPoo™ lineup is expected to easily surpass the iPod shuffle as the company's most popular product. Yes, Apple Cultists can already easily create their own iPoo™, but feces didn't seem cool until Jobs told them it was cool. Remember, kids: the ONLY cool feces is Jobs' highly individualistic, rebellious iPoo™ (coming soon in six different colors/flavors, including the red [hematochezia] and black [melena] U2 GI bleed model)

------------------------
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.
------------------------

Say hello to my little friend...

RE: Part 2
tonywonghs @ 5/2/2005 10:09:14 PM # Q
Or Palm developers may try out http://www.palmdomain.com

User click on the "Buy Now" button on palmdomain product page will link to developer own ecommerce store directly.

Check it out.


--
Tony

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It's absolutely true

Nycran @ 4/27/2005 2:28:51 AM # Q
There's no 'if' about it. 40% and 50% are now the rates. Motricity has become a monopoly and they're using that leverage to completely screw the developers. Once upon a time Palm Gear's commision was only 20% - they've increased it over time as they've bought-out smaller sites like PDA Green.

There's a massive problem - consumers don't care (or at least don't know) about what's happening to developers. They just want a fast easy, secure service, and Motricity delivers on that.

There are in fact smaller sites out there that charge more reasonable fees, eg: http://www.mobihand.com/ but sites like these are going to really struggle for market space. Sure, developers can put products up elsewhere but unless customers (and lots of them) will find their wares, it's a useless exercise.

I think it will take a company with a massive budget who can afford to advertise on TV and radio to truly start taking some market share back.

RE: It's absolutely true
DevPOV @ 4/27/2005 9:18:05 AM # Q
Which is very expensive and would lead, no doubt, to 40%-60% commissions+fees.

And opening up nearly any kind of competing site is very difficult if you consider the security implications, bandwidth, STAFF (accountants, webmasters, support, and mgmt), and marketing.


Reply to this comment

Developers hosting their own payment options?

reinbeau @ 4/27/2005 1:22:47 PM # Q
Is it that hard for the developer to host their own payment? Yahoo stores or somesuch? I always check for other payment avenues when I'm going to buy a new Palm OS program, I'd much prefer to pay the developer directly than have them splitting their profits with heavy-handers like Motricity.


**************************************
Ann - happily using her Garmin iQue3600

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