Recently, SOE President John Smedley asserted that Star Wars: The Old Republic would be the last high profile MMO to utilize a subscription model. BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk are confident in the subscription model going forward.
“Those are very kind words in a way,” said Zeschuk. “It’s interesting – I think there will always be a place for premium content at a premium price and that’s one of the differences. Free to play is very much about trial, about ‘Hey, I don’t know what this is, I don’t have confidence that it’s any good, but I’m willing to take a look at it,’ versus ‘I know this is good, from a trusted source, and it’s the biggest license in the world.’ So it’s a different value proposition.”
“There’s more competition for entertainment dollars now than ever before from social and play for free, and all sorts of entertainment, which I think is actually really healthy from an entertainment industry perspective,” added Muzyka. “But I agree with Greg that there’s a space for a certain number of premium products that are subscription based or whatever the premium pricing model is. But they have to merit it, they have to earn that from a consumer trust perspective and delivering and exceeding expectations. I think The Old Republic is definitely in that triple-A premium category. That’s the feedback reading from the players and data testing.”
Source: IndustryGamers
