

Ask HN: Has WP7 app pricing turned you off from development or purchase? - pedalpete

I just got my new windows phone today after being a happy ZuneHD user since the device was introduced. Living in Canada, I never had access to the Zune Marketplace to purchase music, so it wasn't an issue.&#60;p&#62;Somehow I never understood that Zune didn't work like iTunes (or any logical establishment) where you pay for what you purchase. Zune makes you purchase points which are then redeemed for apps and media.&#60;p&#62;My instant reaction, I'm not going to 'top-up' on Zune points so I can buy something later. I'm not going to give Microsoft (or anybody else for that matter) a balance to hold until a later date. Why would I?&#60;p&#62;I find this particularly interesting as I can get netflix on my phone, I can probably build an app that will connect to the amazon music store, or other source where I already have an account, etc. etc.&#60;p&#62;I'm surprised there hasn't been more discussion around this 'strategy' which I can only believe is setting Microsoft up for failure in the apps world.&#60;p&#62;As a developer, I'd steer away from a paid app just because I'm sure there are lots of WP7 uers who won't use the credit system.&#60;p&#62;Am I the only one that feels this way? Or am I just the only one who bought a windows phone?
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byoung2
_> Somehow I never understood that Zune didn't work like iTunes (or any
logical establishment) where you pay for what you purchase. Zune makes you
purchase points which are then redeemed for apps and media._

Anyone with an XBox will be familiar with this setup. XBox Live uses Microsoft
Points as a currency so that Microsoft doesn't have to eat the cost of
processing so many transaction fees on purchases of a dollar or two. I'm not
sure how Apple gets around this on $0.99 purchases...wouldn't they have to pay
$0.10-$0.30 per app/song sold? Microsoft's system cuts that per-transaction
cost dramatically, because people would buy $10, $25, or $50 worth of points
at a time.

And yes, you are the only one who bought a windows phone.

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pedalpete
I know all about the cc processing charges, but as you mentioned it didn't
stop Apple,Google,Palm or bb. I assume when these companies are processing so
many small transactions the cc companies cut them a break on the transaction
cost.

