What would you pay for a great mod?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by GTFREAK, Nov 8, 2011.

  1. GTFREAK

    GTFREAK Registered

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    What about TurboSquid? How can those people get away with selling models that look exactly like the real car, are branded like the real car and even named like the real car? If it's such a big problem, TurboSquid would be shut down. I just don't see your point of view. But perhaps I am just naive.

    Could you elaborate on what the differences are? You've peaked my interest :)
     
  2. Slothman

    Slothman Registered

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    Ok, I will be brutaly honest, I havnt read through most of this.

    But one question, has the question of the financial implications for the mod team been raised yet?

    I mean structures have to be put in place (different for every part of the world) to allow for payments, taxation, declrataion etc etc. This also applys to donations in many parts of the world as well.

    So yeh, every region is different and some have different measures for dealing with other parts of the world as well, just wondering if that liitle Pandoras Box has been opened in this thread.

    I think this is pretty important as its not necassarily the want of the consumer to pay for the Mod but more the want of the Mod team to go through the necassary hassle to setup an entity to TAKE those payments, legally speaking.

    When it comes down to it the Mod team first has to realise whether it wants to produce something for the community which is essentially a labour of love OR do they wish to be considered a commercial entity?

    Personally, the way some people behave when being provided with that "labour of love" I am surprised the sim racing community actually has any left willing to do what they do for them. As I read somewhere "Dont create a mod if you dont have a thick skin".
     
  3. Bill Zimmerman

    Bill Zimmerman Registered

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    Here is a link to TurboSquid's agreement for sellers with branded material and likeness. They like to circumvent the legals by passing on responsibility to the creators themselves. I know of several inciedents of infringement and prosecution of material from there. I realize it's still going on, but the risk is there.

    http://support.turbosquid.com/entries/172346-models-with-brand-names-logos


    In the past 6 years I have worked on licensing with over 20 track venues including ISC, SMI and Dover Motorsports. Major car manufacturers like GM, Ford, Dodge, Toyota. Race organizations such as Nascar, ARCA, and/or major sponsors like Bass Pro Shops, Disney & more. Some are extremely proactive with protection of their material and will stop at nothing to ensure it is properly distributed, and there are some which will not.

    All I am saying is, just removing logos, or renaming things may not be enough to allow for resale of the material without high risk. And the lawsuits and infringement penalties can be extravagant. :)
     
  4. rci808

    rci808 Registered

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    i do a little modding, setup a website, and public server to advertise and run my stuff.. (and slimjims).

    i setup a little paypal donations jar, made a pretty good chunk of cash with it. and now i'm giving some of that money back to ISI for rf2, and slimjim, because he finally put up a donations jar at his site...

    all good man. \:D/
     
  5. PLAYLIFE

    PLAYLIFE Registered

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    Live For Speed is not a valid example. I only said that having an official license adds credibility - I didn't say that not having an official license doesn't have credibility.

    Again, indie developers may indeed make lots of money but I wasn't questioning that.

    The only point I made is that an official license adds credibility. Another way of adding credibility is to make a great product, which I believe is what you are saying and yes I agree with that.
     
  6. Vince Klortho

    Vince Klortho Registered

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    Bill : you might want to have your attorney investigate this decision. The judge ruled that video games are "expressive works, akin to an expressive painting." This could give an entirely different approach to licensing since there is rarely anything done to painters.
     
  7. mianiak

    mianiak Registered

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    I second that. I think even thick skinned people can be turned off modding after some of the comments in here.

    But on the lighter side, the silent majority do appreciate what's given to them and that's what keeps me going. :)
     
  8. Bill Zimmerman

    Bill Zimmerman Registered

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    Hey Vince, been a long time .. Hope you have been well ... :) Our attorneys have no worries, as everything we have is fully coordinated before release. If if ever there was an incident, I doubt we would ever be as lucky as EA though.... An argument can be made for anything I assume, but if it goes the other way, $$ and personal hardship is almost insurmountable for many :(
     
  9. Dahie

    Dahie Registered

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    Thanks for the vivid and polite discussion! I'd like to add some thoughts from my perspective as long-time modder and looking into other non-game communities.

    CTDP accepted PayPal since 2005 for donations and in the wake for the release of F1-2005 in 2006 we received around 100€ worth of donations. For F1-2006 which was a much bigger effort, we received none. We don't advertise for donations and we are lucky enough not to require donations. Still our infrastructure needs money and other modding teams were happy to have some financial support to improve the working process. The money you spent into modding team can show in the quality and the time invested by the modders.

    Micropayments are currently a big topic in internet community. Google is starting services, there is mobile-payment and various services start that make spending small money very easy. Instead of donations of 10€+ you can donate 1€ with a click of a button. Personally I use flattr, which allows you to define a fix amount of money you want to spend each month and this money is is divided and given to all items you flattr (ie LIKE) this month. My usually flattrs amount to 50€ per item, but if many people do this, this also sums up nicely and it is a great way of appreciation, even though it is only little amounts. CTDP has registered on Flattr and we may decide to advertise it when it gets to the next releases.

    Going commercial is a big endeavour and tough. Too big to do it in his spare time. Having a platform like the Mobile App Stores would be very beneficial to support modders who would like to go commercial. I see potential here, but it's very experimental and not sure how successful this can be. Failure is always an option.
     
  10. IMSA GTP

    IMSA GTP Registered

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    Thats typical of what all the modders have relayed to me when I was inquiring last year. Lots of people claim they donate and maybe they do, but they certainly don't donate to the major league modders. Maybe they think buying a G27 is a donation.
     
  11. the_last_name_left

    the_last_name_left Registered

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    5000 simoleons - tops.
     
  12. Petros Mak

    Petros Mak Registered

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    +1

    Hey Dahie, nice to see you around. Hope you are doing well mate. :)
     
  13. Saabjock

    Saabjock Registered

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    Mods have already been sold for rFactor. Granted, it wasn't a full mod but a mod none the less. Remember Hudson Kerr's sky textures and Hotwire utility? I actually have both and still use them to this day. They were "head and shoulders" above anything offered at the time of release, so guys bought them. I can see both sides of the argument. On the one hand, it takes a lot of time to code and companies have to recover the cost of doing so. On the other side of the argument; It doesn't take any less time for an individual to do the same work. The only difference is that He/She is doing it for the fun of it and will do it regardless. I guess it comes down to whether a modder feels obligated to share his/her work with the community. I guess I have no problem donating for a mod from an individual (it has to be exceptional)...I just don't like the precedent it sets.
     
  14. Valerio Kinex

    Valerio Kinex Registered

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    close this ****ing thread it's a nogo, i will no pay a cent.. but i will play the mods anyways.
     
  15. jtbo

    jtbo Registered

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    I'll say just one thing, money complicates things, everytime when money gets involved it will bring lot of issues, which then must be overcome with.

    That is why I will not ask money from mods I make, even man-hours are in thousands for one mod alone.


    Oh LFS has RAC, Raceabout, it is Finnish real world prototype and very official car in that game, just many don't know that fact.
     
  16. conticreative

    conticreative Registered

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    Wow, the entitlement.
     
  17. steve30x

    steve30x Registered

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    If its paying for a mod or mods I would then call them DLC. I will not pay for a mod and if most mods need to be paid for then I wont bother with rFactor 2.
     
  18. Valerio Kinex

    Valerio Kinex Registered

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    i would donate a coffè tho to some modders! a coffè is like 0.80 euro cent, if we all offer 1 coffè to the modders we like, i think it would be cool and gentle.
    I would offer a coffè to f1 ligue modders.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 30, 2012
  19. N0body Of The Goat

    N0body Of The Goat Registered

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    I was about to post a new thread, but what I was going to post fits nicely with this existing thread...

    Mercedes AMG for RF2 for "just 6.99 Euros", anyone? LOL
    http://sim-dream.com/buy.rf2.sl65.html
     
  20. jubuttib

    jubuttib Registered

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    Lucky you, a cup of coffee is more like 1.50€ over here. Luckily I don't drink coffee.
     

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