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Where's the Money Coming From?


witch_wyzwurd

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I've been a Cakewalk user for over 10 years and have always had to pay for updates, etc. I'm wondering how Cakewalk is being provided for free, considering all the costs involved with buying the product line, buying up bad debt, paying for programmers, paying for the website construction and maintenance, etc.? Anyone who operates a business knows you can't do all of this by way of a tip jar. Anyone?

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Bandlab is doing something way ahead of its time. So for them to own their own DAW is an integral part of their process.

They sell interfaces, Harmony guitars and more.

I know what your thinking.."There must be more than that". Well maybe there is.. Maybe its the analytic data they want. If Bandlab wants access to how many times I hit the Undo button, by all means let them. I can understand where your curiosity might get the best of you but just let it play out. Use Cakewalk and be happy.

I consider what Bandlab has given us (this past year) as a gift.  A big one at that.

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FWIW, there are many long discussions about this topic in the old forum.  Too lazy to look for a link at the moment, but if the OP is interested in more info, he can search there.  I think also Meng responded in some of those discussions.

Edited by urock
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Welcome! As mentioned, this topic has been discussed ad absurdum in the old forum.

If you can work out how Google can give away their Chrome browser for free, Google Drive for free, Google Voice for free, GMail for free, all they give away for free, and yet become one of the richest corporations in the world, then you'll have solved the puzzle.

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On 1/26/2019 at 4:38 AM, Chuck E Baby said:

Bandlab is doing something way ahead of its time. So for them to own their own DAW is an integral part of their process.

They sell interfaces, Harmony guitars and more.

I know what your thinking.."There must be more than that". Well maybe there is.. Maybe its the analytic data they want. If Bandlab wants access to how many times I hit the Undo button, by all means let them. I can understand where your curiosity might get the best of you but just let it play out. Use Cakewalk and be happy.

I consider what Bandlab has given us (this past year) as a gift.  A big one at that.

Ahhh, I didn't realize they sell other products. Thanks.

As far as analytical data and the undo-button thing, I'm guessing you're being snarky as anyone who knows about the internet and data collection knows that no one is sitting around selling data about undo-button clicks. Lol! And even if that was the case, I wouldn't understand why anyone would be okay with it just to get something for free. That's a hell of a slippery slope. But it's all just conspiracy theories, just like everything else that's been shown to be actually happening.

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5 hours ago, Starship Krupa said:

Welcome! As mentioned, this topic has been discussed ad absurdum in the old forum.

If you can work out how Google can give away their Chrome browser for free, Google Drive for free, Google Voice for free, GMail for free, all they give away for free, and yet become one of the richest corporations in the world, then you'll have solved the puzzle.

It's already known.

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5 hours ago, witch_wyzwurd said:

It's already known.

Well then, imagine a similar scenario for BandLab and you'll be well on your way to understanding!

What I'm having a hard time understanding is how it is, almost a year after BandLab issued their first, already improved version of Cakewalk, along with a statement to the existing user base about their intentions, followed by nothing but the kind of free updates (stability and speed fixes, prayed-for features) that most long-term user bases would die for, and living up to the statement of intent, we are still getting getting salvos from the Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt Brigade.

We beat the poor horse past recognition in the old forum.

It's 2019! If there's someone alive, much less a computer user, who can seriously ask the question "how can you make money on free software?"

Your web browser, your Android phone, at least half the web servers you visit every day....FREE SOFTWARE.

The operating system, Windows 10, on the computer I am using, is effectively free software. Why? It came with Windows 7 installed on it 8 years ago, and Microsoft upgraded it for....free. Windows 10 must have cost a FORTUNE to code! And they say that it's a lifetime upgrade license, too, just like Sonar Platinum. OMG, everyone knows you can't make money doing that! How are Microsoft going to stay in business?

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6 hours ago, witch_wyzwurd said:

I wouldn't understand why anyone would be okay with it just to get something for free. That's a hell of a slippery slope.

Curious, what web browser did you use when you typed that?

I think that a fun giveaway item at NAMM would have been little tinfoil hats with the BandLab logo on them.

Okay, don't leave us hanging, where does that slippery slope lead to? What is at the bottom of it? Rather than this vague smoke, exactly what are you suggesting?

I'm a practical man. If you think I should not use this very useful software that I am being offered use of for free, tell me what negative consequences I will suffer if I use it. We've had many conspiracy ding-dongs around with the usual vague stuff about "you're fooling yourself" blah blah blah. Well, if I'm fooling myself and there's a slippery slope and you know more than I do, I'm all ears. Tell me what you know.

If you're using Cakewalk, what is your motive in posting this kind of thing? To deter other people from using it? To try to make other people feel uneasy about using it? To appear smarter than other people, as if you have special knowledge of the way the world really works? To get attention? What's your game?

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Speaking of this topic, why did Cakewalk fall through?  Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't they owned by Gibson?  What happened to the company?

 

Also, on another note, something that kind of pisses me off.  I bought Sonar Platinum for $600 and less than 5 months later it's completely free.  I will be pissed off about that for years to come. >:(

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@Skeptik Gibson had serious debt issues following some strange purchases, Philips Entertainment? They then did something they have done before, was it Giga-sampler?  They also filed a section 11 quite soon after they decided to drop support and development of SONAR if I remember correctly. 

Technically Cakewalk did not fail at all Gibson just pulled the plug.  Luckily a very smart, forward looking person, @Meng and Bandlab, his company, purchased the intellectual copyright to the software products and after 26 years of using Cakewalk software products I am very thankful to the foresight and his faith in the product.

If you really are concerned add some pennies to the Tip Jar! on the Cakewalk Bandlab Page.

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9 hours ago, witch_wyzwurd said:

Ahhh, I didn't realize they sell other products. Thanks.

As far as analytical data and the undo-button thing, I'm guessing you're being snarky as anyone who knows about the internet and data collection knows that no one is sitting around selling data about undo-button clicks. Lol! And even if that was the case, I wouldn't understand why anyone would be okay with it just to get something for free. That's a hell of a slippery slope. But it's all just conspiracy theories, just like everything else that's been shown to be actually happening.

  The buyers are a really huge corporation. They own lots of things.   Whatever version of FL Studio is a one time purchase and their users are always coming up with ideas thinking Image Line is gonna go belly up.  20 years and waiting.

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