F... CDV

[Da Beginna]

I'm pretty p.... off with the order handling of cdv. Still you can't even pre-order for the English version in Europe. For the people who still haven't bought CMBO cdv charges 46 bugs. While you can get it for 30 from BTF - if you ain't from Western Europe. More 15 bugs difference in prize is quite a lot... isn't is?

Maybe you BTF guys improve your marketing?

[Michael Dorosh]

You'll still get it faster than Canada - Canada Customs and Canada Post will delay shipments to us by a couple of weeks quite possibly. Everything is relative. You also don't have to pay international postage to get it.

[Prinz Eugen]

Originally posted by Da Beginna:

Maybe you BTF guys improve your marketing?

Sure, listen to the expert speaking !

And I'm p...ed off with n00bs of your sort. Go away.

[Battlefront.com]

I would double check the price of CMBO in Europe. I am nearly positive the price was dropped (for some markets at least) a while ago. In fact, I think it might even be slightly cheaper in some places than it is from our website.

International marketing, sales, and distribution is not an easy thing. If it was, all any company would need is an office in one country with a couple of phones, a fax machine, and some nitwits to use them. Reality is that international marketing, sales, and distribution is not at all easy. We should know

CDV has been a good partner to us. This says a lot, especially to those who know our stance on retail publishers in general (hint... we, uhm, don't really like them ). They have brought CMBO to tens of thousands of customers who would otherwise never have heard about Combat Mission. Many of them are now on this BBS in fact.

No arrangement is perfect (even our direct only model, just ask Canadians about their Customs folks ), but we think we have a damned good system in place right now. Perhaps the next game will be published by CDV, perhaps it will be another partner, or perhaps we will publish it only on our own. Whatever the choice is, it will be made carefully and with the customers' best interests (ALL customers, not just the ones who want to buy from us online) as the second most important element. The most important is a deal which is solid from a business standpoint. If it ain't going to help our business, then by definition it hurts the customer and therefore should be avoided.

Steve

[Jussi Köhler]

Steve,

this site has CMBO for ~20 euros... I've seen it for similar prices on the shelf for quite some time here in Finland this summer.

I´m certain that if a certain person is not willing to pay up the "full" price for CMBO at one store, he might find it for conciderably cheaper somewhere else... There is a competition going on between stores you know...?

Jussi

[Da Beginna]

Ooops!

Just a little topic and everybody is going crazy. I didn't expected this - I'm not sure if I should like this.

When you doubt my word on pricing - pls. visit www.cdv.de

I don't want to spend my time wise-a...ing about marketing. Actually I'm doing a MLL (Business Law) and think I have a rough idea about things. Once upon a time I read your manifesto and was really enthusiastic about it - I think you changed your views a bit since then. CDV spoils my time looking forward to CMBB a bit - but nevertheless I will buy it. You guys make fantastic products! I play CMBO and Strategic Command again and again - it was easy and very convinient to purchase them via your site. That's why I really don't get channeling via CDV. I think it doesn't improves your market penetration...

but hey - NO OFFENCE - this are just MY personal views.

Thank you for taking care of your customers.

P.S.: Maybe I will write my assignment in the eCommerce lecture about www.battlefront.com

[Lars]

Originally posted by Da Beginna:

For the people who still haven't bought CMBO cdv charges 46 bugs. While you can get it for 30 from BTF - if you ain't from Western Europe. More 15 bugs difference in prize is quite a lot... isn't is?

I could have paid with bugs?

[StellarRat]

I sent in a small ant colony and they are sending me over 100 copies of CMBB plus a copy of every other game and book they sell...

[Sargon70]

Originally posted by Da Beginna:

[QB]Ooops!

Just a little topic and everybody is going crazy. I didn't expected this - I'm not sure if I should like this.

When you doubt my word on pricing - pls. visit www.cdv.de

I

I have just visited CDV's site and they sell CMBO for EUR 19,99 (REALLY!!!) and the price for CMBB will be EUR 45,99

Sargon

[Doug Beman]

Originally posted by StellarRat:

I sent in a small ant colony and they are sending me over 100 copies of CMBB plus a copy of every other game and book they sell...

Man did YOU get robbed. I sent in ladybugs, and they sent me the source code and a Capter Splattertastic Decoder Ring!

DjB

[ September 10, 2002, 01:43 PM: Message edited by: Doug Beman ]

[Guest Sgt. Emren]

I have just visited CDV's site and they sell CMBO for EUR 19,99 (REALLY!!!) and the price for CMBB will be EUR 45,99

Yes, but that is for the GERMAN version... The english version is still $46

[Firefly]

They're charging an entire cent more? The filthy swine!

[Francesco]

BTS says:

"...the customers' best interests - ALL customers ..."

First of all I don't want to chriticize marketing choices of Battlefront staff. I'm sure that they work as better as they can for their interest and their customers' ones.

But in this case I feel forced to give my little opinion about this statement.

Battlefront says that all customers are being protected and equally served by Battlefront. This is true, but this can't be said about what CDV does.

I sent them an E-mail receiving a quite swift and kind reply. But this reply didn't satisfied me.

CDV says that German version of the game will comne out on 20th Sep.

And this is the same day English (USA) verison comes out from Battlefront.

The English version by CDV will come out "some weeks later".

So, what do you think?

Is this right?

I think NO. And I think so because I (and every non-german-western-europe inhabitant)'m a customer of the same importance as a rest-of-the-world one is.

So, why have I to wait when a german could get his copy before me just because he is german?

CDV is german, their CMBB will be sold out FIRST in german. This can easly be understood but it's not right!

The only error I think BTS made (if this is an error) is that they didn't asked for a UNIQUE DATE release for ENGLISH version, that should be the most improtant one, because it is the non-localized and we can say the wider-ranged one.

Maybe BTS hadn't the possibility of asking somehting like this to CDV, because this CDV doeas what it wants... but a little more attention to non-german-western-europe customers would have been very appreciated...

Thank you for this space, when we can express gently and in a construcitve manner our opinions.

Best regards all,

Francesco (non-german-western-europe-future-CMBB-customer)

[Guest Sgt. Emren]

Well said, Francesco! I think BFC has been less than fortunate with CDV, so what are we going to do about it? Wait...I know...I'm never playing as the Axis side in this game again!!!

[Fetchez la Vache]

I guess the silver lining is that with CDV support the potential customer base is expanded considerably by getting CMBB onto store shelves. Personally I must admit I don't mind waiting an extra couple weeks (I've been waiting a year as it is ) if it helps BTS. The 'sanitised' thing is a bit irritating though and I hope any software protection doesn't cause problems.

[flamingknives]

So, what do you think?

Is this right?

Let's see. CDV distributes to shops. This takes time. CDV is based in Germany. Therefore Germany is closer to CDV than England is.

Moving things around takes time, proportional to the distance travelled. Therefore it will take longer for CDV to get stock to England than Germany.

As a Mac User in England. I have to wait a bit longer for the post to reach me and it costs me more.

IS THIS RIGHT!?

I'M BEING RIPPED OFF!

"INFAMY, INFAMY, THEY'VE ALL GOT IT INFAMY!"

"Chill Winston."

"Good things come to those who wait"

If CDV gets the game to more people by selling through the stores, good on them.

As for the price - $46 - I pay $45 getting mine from BFC. And then $7 in postage an packing.

Which is the better deal?

[Arioch]

Originally posted by flamingknives:

</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr /> So, what do you think?

Is this right?

Let's see. CDV distributes to shops. This takes time. CDV is based in Germany. Therefore Germany is closer to CDV than England is.

Moving things around takes time, proportional to the distance travelled. Therefore it will take longer for CDV to get stock to England than Germany.

As a Mac User in England. I have to wait a bit longer for the post to reach me and it costs me more.

IS THIS RIGHT!?

I'M BEING RIPPED OFF!

"INFAMY, INFAMY, THEY'VE ALL GOT IT INFAMY!"

"Chill Winston."

"Good things come to those who wait"

If CDV gets the game to more people by selling through the stores, good on them.

As for the price - $46 - I pay $45 getting mine from BFC. And then $7 in postage an packing.

Which is the better deal?</font>

[Da Beginna]

I never have wished before to own a Mac. Just up till NOW.

And yes I always pay with bugs. 45 bugs are almost a half brain bug.

Klendatuh must die, so that we can stay alive...

[M Hofbauer]

Originally posted by Battlefront.com:

They have brought CMBO to tens of thousands of customers who would otherwise never have heard about Combat Mission. Many of them are now on this BBS in fact.

not that that is always a good thing in itself...

Originally posted by wade:

What english speaking countries are there.

[Firefly]

Originally posted by Arioch:

Your deal, because with BTS you are sure of beeing delivered before christmas Unlike us screwed with CDV :mad:

I don't know about France, but in Britain we celebrate Christmas in December, which is after October 4th. The shops will probably have their Christmas decorations up by then though .

[M Hofbauer]

Originally posted by Da Beginna:

45 bugs are almost a half brain bug.

LOL...join the M.I. !

[KiloIndiaAlpha]

Originally posted by Da Beginna:

I'm pretty p.... off with the order handling of cdv. Still you can't even pre-order for the English version in Europe. For the people who still haven't bought CMBO cdv charges 46 bugs. While you can get it for 30 from BTF - if you ain't from Western Europe. More 15 bugs difference in prize is quite a lot... isn't is?

Maybe you BTF guys improve your marketing?

I pre-ordered from a UK game site, don't have details here but look for my name in recent posts and you'll find it. Cost £29 + p.p

[Canuck]

Originally posted by Michael Dorosh:

You'll still get it faster than Canada - Canada Customs and Canada Post will delay shipments to us by a couple of weeks quite possibly. Everything is relative. You also don't have to pay international postage to get it.

Yeah! By the time I got it my "45$" game was costing me a little over 80 dollars. Which is why I either won't be buying the game, or I'll be waiting a long time until the price drops, or until there is a Canadian distributor.

[Battlefront.com]

Da Beginna,

That's why I really don't get channeling via CDV. I think it doesn't improves your market penetration...

Hmmm... let's do a quick check of refferences here. Da Beginna... a student. Me... a business man in this biz for 9 years. Da Beginna... has school books with theories printed in them. Me... sales statistics directly applicable to the sales of CMBO and CMBB. Da Beginna... thinks nothing is improved by going with CDV. Me... thinks the exact opposite. Now, who should people believe?

Francesco, I never said that our relationship with CDV, or its relationship with its customers, was perfect. What I said is that on balance it is beneficial. You might have a problem with them, but how many more people would have a "problem" because they were still looking for a really good wargame and didn't know of CMBO/CMBB? The fact is that CDV has sold a lot more units into Europe than we ever could (for a couple of understandable reasons).

Overall, I think it is self serving to say the customer's interests aren't best served by CDV because you are in the minority that knew of us already. If CDV never distributed CM you would still have your copy of the game, but thousands of others wouldn't.

Now, do we think that we can better service customers than CDV? Yes. We are small and narrowly focused compared to them. If CDV couldn't do much better than us in Europe, we wouldn't be partnered with them for that reason alone. But the benefits to us, our customers as a whole, and to the game (i.e. more money for us, more/better stuff from us) clearly shows the CDV relationship to be a good one. This can change at any moment, but for right now we are quite happy with the deal.

And as for the release date, we did have some control over it. But we also have to be reasonable. The UK had some glitches and therefore the release is delayed until October 1st. It has nothing to do with CDV being German. But yes, I think we will have more strict language in any future agreements since for a while there it was looking like 3-4 weeks delay, which was unacceptable to us. We would kill a future deal over such a delay regardless of how much money they threw at us, so rest assured we do think of you guys first.

Canuck, my understanding is that most first release games in Canadian retail is around $80 CDN. This comes from pervious discussions about pricing in various countries. So I am not exactly sure what the complaint is, other than the variable delay at the border.

Steve

[Canuck]

Originally posted by Battlefront.com:

Canuck, my understanding is that most first release games in Canadian retail is around $80 CDN. This comes from pervious discussions about pricing in various countries. So I am not exactly sure what the complaint is, other than the variable delay at the border.

Steve[/QB]

Very rarely is a PC game ever at 80 dollars. The only one I can think of is Warcraft 3 whcich for some reason refuses to drop

Most games will retail for about 69.99

I just recently bought Medieval:Total War ( an absolutely brilliant game!) for 54.99

It seems to me that many people on this board devote almost all of their spare time towards this game. Which means that their expenditure is justifiable; their ratio of hours of enjoyment/dollar is extremely high. I on the other hand enjoy playing many different genres of games which means that I can't contribute a significant amount of time to just one. Therefore I just cant justify paying so much money for a game. Not that BTS doesnt deserve it of course. Of the many games that I own, very few have I actually purchased but I bought CMBO because it really was a groundbreaking game and the developers were not some large company who didnt care about the customer.

Anyways I'm starting to ramble

If I could walk into my local EB, or Compucentre or even Walmart and pick it up for 59.99 or even 69.99 then I probably would. However for now I'll just wait.