Cod4

[bryan]

I based the overall COD4 prices low enough to cover the same end as COD2. Yes the resources are probably going to be more. But I provide service to a large COD2 Community for tournaments and I have to have pricing. So doing research on the web, seeing what some of the other companies are around. I came to the figure of 2.00 a slot. Gameservers.com and a few others are from a $1.50 - $2.00 . So give or take I'm able to price enough to have taken in half a dozen pre orders from this tournament. If the resources are more than expected. Then I will redo the prices to cover the loss. But for those who have pre ordered I cant do much about it. But it the situation I'm in providing service for COD2 now to the tournament. They want and there viewers want to pre order. So I have to take a small hit to accommodate those people.

 

Agree or disagree I have no choice but to bite the bullet or lose some customers

[jbiloh]

At $2 / public slot you're going to be taking it through the throat.

 

Best of luck

[Todd Holley]

How is clanservers going to manage 1.50 then?

[JasonF]

Oversold boxes and laggy servers, that is how.

[DougK94]

Not too bash the OP, but that is the problem with pricing in this industry. Just because someone else prices a particular game at $0.99 a slot, everyone else thinks they have to match the price too. Then we lose our butt's as we then can only host 160 slots on a server that costs $200 a month. Each host should see what their costs are relative to their expenses and profit margin and then price a game accordingly..... But then we lose customers to someone who has it below costs and then that person is out of business when their next server payment is due. Then the customer finds another low cost host and the cycle keeps repeating itself. And we all wonder why this business has such a bad rap.........

[Defcon|Rich]

That's a good point Doug. People need to realize that not everyone pays the same costs for servers.. Larger providers with multiple racks full of machines are going to pay quite a bit less per machine so they can charge less per game server and still generate a profit. The folks that try to price match with them will end up taking a beaten..

[DougK94]

Thanks Rich, I am not the best at putting my thoughts into words, but you were able to get the just of what I meant. We need to set our prices to make OUR OWN costs and profit margins, not try to match someone else's prices that will put us out of business. I would much rather have 10 customers that I make $200 a month on than 100 that I make the same on.

 

I know my prices are higher than the cut rate places, but my marketing plan is different than them. As a result, I try to offer servers that are not oversold and offer support better then average. My churn rate is VERY low, over 50% of my customers have been with me for 3-5 years and will not even consider anyone else Of course there are a few that only stay a couple of months, then try one of these low cost hosts and then they end up coming crawling back

[ECF]

$3.00 should be the price per slot minimum.

[ribshap]

Not too bash the OP, but that is the problem with pricing in this industry. Just because someone else prices a particular game at $0.99 a slot, everyone else thinks they have to match the price too. Then we lose our butt's as we then can only host 160 slots on a server that costs $200 a month. Each host should see what their costs are relative to their expenses and profit margin and then price a game accordingly..... But then we lose customers to someone who has it below costs and then that person is out of business when their next server payment is due. Then the customer finds another low cost host and the cycle keeps repeating itself. And we all wonder why this business has such a bad rap.........

 

 

That.. and most of the new GSP see gameservers selling so cheap and thinks they have to make those prices to compete. Competiting with a company as large as gameservers is pointless they have thousands and thousands of customers and while their servers aren't the best quality, for a pub server their $1.50 a slot isn't that bad of a deal. But that is because they have the money to move onto other boxes, and still make profit from sheer volume of customers. This simply doesn't work when you only have a few dozen customers.

 

Prices should be based off what your expensives are, and how much profit you wish to make off each user and or box, if you want a legit business. Break it down to how many slots you can use theoretically could use per box per game (based off of cpu %) and see how many slots you need to sell to break even, then how many you need after that to make a profit. If you have staff, you have to add that in as well, taxes, etc.

 

 

Daniel and I tried to warn people on the CoD4 forums because a company was offering $1.50 a slot for CoD4 servers, it was clear they are a start up company (they have 1 location and "more coming soon") and we tried to let the community know, this might not be the best decision to put your money. We weren't telling them to order from us, but to think about your choices before you hit that order button. It basically back fired on us, and now some think we are bad company's trying to put down another company to help benefit us, which wasn't our goal.

[Alex H]

Its so sad that the industry has gone this way. Do you think it will ever recover? (General question to anyone) I personally cant see that happening unfortunately, well not soon anyway. But I suppose one day people will realise you get what you pay for.

 

We haven't decided on prices yet but I should think we will be pretty close to £2 ($4)

 

Just hope the parts for the box come soon enough.

 

Quad cores

[Todd Holley]

Ill be $2.75 most likely... hoping my new machines will arrive in dallas before the 4th as right now we have almost 0 room in dallas.

[bryan]

Heres how I look at it. I had it as $2.50 a slot. And I had people from the Call of Duty Community I sponsor asking why I was $2.50 and 3 other companies were $1.50. I said the same thing your all saying. What are you to do when a smaller company like myself needs to make it into this new game. All these people go to large providers first. You act like low prices give GSP bad names. Its these larger companies with low prices that push smaller companies like myself to lower my prices to compete.

[kaRMa]

Another thing as well that hurts the industry, is the inability to maintain your own

creative strategies. Once you run a solid tactic, a good margin of competitors pick it up and try to claim it as their own. An industry without regulation, is the same thing as a country with no governent. We need a union!!

[Todd Holley]

I would not have made it in this business if I would not have

 

1. Known a lot of people in Call of Duty 1.3, which I now own all but 13 servers in 1.3. And

 

2. Would not have bought out another company.

 

My pricing @ 1.50 a slot for cod1 servers not only brings me plenty of clients, but also makes me more profit than you would think. Yes the clients go to the big guys first but I have a lot of clients from game servers that say they answer support tickets like robots, and slow robots at that. As people have waited days for a reply to a simple question. I felt like I had to have low pricing to get in the game, but that isn't all it is about. Good support will get you clients, and long term clients.

 

Figured i'd say a few words. Sorry for being "off topic" as this thread starting as everybody expressing excitement for the release of the most anticipated game in a while.

[Defcon|Rich]

Good point 666spitfire. There are many ways to compete, Lowering your prices shouldn't be one of them if it means lowering the quality of your service.

 

If you cannot compete with the bigger fish on prices i would suggest offering something they cannot such as tighter support or other incentives to bring in the revenue. I look around and see every new startup basically just copying the next guy and crossing their fingers they will make $$... Sorry to say but most times what works for one won't work for you. Common sense should tell you this.. Be creative!

[DougK94]

That is true in ANY business.......

[jbiloh]

GameServers, which is owned by Choopa is paying sub $10 / mbit for their bandwidth. Factor that into the equation, along with their business model and $1.50 / public slot works.

 

That is if you want to churn 35% of your new signups on a monthly basis. Heh.

[ECF]

Don't lower your prices.... I don't know how much clearler I can say it.

 

Rich, when was the last time you lowered your prices because someone said they could get CS for .$50 a slot from Joe Blow down the street?

 

 

It doesn't pay in the long run unless you are like GS.com and have deeeeeeeeeep pockets and a business model that turns over clients every month.

[jbiloh]

Would absolutely love to have some pricing power back in the industry. What a dream that is.

[ECF]

Unfortunately Jon you know that will never happen. Too many fly by night hosts coming and going selling everything for $1 a slot.

 

I think it should be mandated that every GSP be registered as a business myself.

[ribshap]

Unfortunately Jon you know that will never happen. Too many fly by night hosts coming and going selling everything for $1 a slot.

 

I think it should be mandated that every GSP be registered as a business myself.

 

Who knew you had to advertise for 4 weeks in the news paper as soon as you got fictitious name statement . The bank took both my papers , but it was the first thing I did, before I got a loan, and everything.

[leetservers]

Hey Jon!

 

You mean he paying $9 a meg for that single homed L3 crap?

 

=bobby

[leetservers]

Ok, I'm sucked in now, Kevin made me do it, LOL

 

What about the clowns pricing $2 a slot for the crytec engine game, now that engine is NASTY on the serverside, a cpu whore and yet $2 a slot.

[leetservers]

Ok, I knocked down a few...LOL listening to Styx greatest hits!

 

Don't let the cheap guys blow smoke up your ass, the numbers dont lie.

PLEASE don't mention companies in this thread but here's a little proof why low price don't work and it does not pay to meet or beat them.

 

Here's an example. 2142 ranked I charge 2.99 a slot, the other company charges $2 a slot

 

mine:

http://www.game-monitor.com/search.php?search=bf2142_provider=10025&type=variable

1526 slots @2.99=$4562.74

 

unnamed company

http://www.game-monitor.com/search.php?rulename=bf2142_provider&ruleval=10029

1920 slots @2.00=$3840

 

Again, lets not name the company but you can see while they have more slots than me. I'm making more money. and THEY have the support headaches!!

 

I've been doing this a long time and sure I have sales etc. but the lower the price the more noobs, 1 monthers and support headaches come with the lower prices. that makes sense I hope, LOL

 

don't low ball, you will only go out of biz fast.

 

That company mentioned a few posts back with a pretty sweet site started out at 1.99 pub/1.75 priv. He thought he was taking the whole pie, what did he do? he made other places meet his price, so now everyone is low like him. now he can't have the whole pie because the noobs can go anywhere and get 1.99 a pub slot, so what does he do? he drops to 1.49 pub/99 priv, where does it end? again stay HIGHER guys, let him get the noobs and support headaches!!!

 

Do you now meet his price again? so he can drop to 99pub and 49 priv?

WAKE UP PEOPLE!! even Wallmart is in trouble, LOL!!

 

I expect a call from kev now, LOL!!

Bobby was a bad boy!!

 

=Bobby

[jbiloh]

Ok, I'm sucked in now, Kevin made me do it, LOL

 

What about the clowns pricing $2 a slot for the crytec engine game, now that engine is NASTY on the serverside, a cpu whore and yet $2 a slot.

 

Straight pipe level3 at $8.50 / mbit is schweeeet.