David Post asked me to relay the following message from him to the community in order that we be fully informed not only regarding the delay in the launch of Next Island, but also what the direction is going forward. When emailing David inquiring about the delay in the launch, I shared how incredibly important it would be to establish a more open communication with the current community, even though the plan is to mass market Next Island to draw in a new player base. David is absolutely on board with this, as I had the feeling he would be based on my interaction with him during the interview process for the launch issue of the EntropiaTimes magazine. I think we can have an expectation that David will remain in communication with us, and his marketing team (Erik Reynolds and Katlean de Monchy) as well, so I think we have much to look forward to. Our introduction to Next Island doesn't seem that far off, which is just before publishing our next issue of the EntropiaTimes magazine on December 12th, so perhaps I can get an updated interview in time to include in the magazine. It will be cutting it close, but I'm willing to go there. HERE IS DAVID'S MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY "Hi everyone - this is David Post, Chairman and Chief Complaint Officer. The delay in the launch dates is my doing. I know that Entropians have seen this before, but I made some difficult decisions based on what is good for us in the long-term. So here's the scoop: We will open our Beta on Dec 7-8 so you all can play - it will not be publicized. We will have our trade launch - to the media at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on January 5th. This was the decision I made because we will have TV coverage then. We will announce and allow the media entry on Jan 5th at the Digital Experience Show at CES. We will have our consumer launch around the 3rd week of January 2011 with events in New York City and Los Angeles (maybe other places as well). My reasoning is, that we make some impact which cannot occur in December, but can occur at CES. I did not want something almost finished, and then have to make excuses. We do appreciate your patience, and hopefully will gain your support. I truly hope you will love Next Island and Time Travel. David Post" I can only say personally, that I am very appreciative that David took the time to respond. Communication between developer and player base is key, and quite important, and I think David will keep us "in the know" as much as he can.
Nice one MS9. Thanks for finding out ... I think David's made a good decision there and +rep to David for letting us know. Much appreciated.
As a further update, I sent an additional email to David since people have been asking (elsewhere) about the length of time the Beta of Next Island will be available. I asked specifically if it would be discontinued at the time that Next Island is made available to the media at CES, and this is the response I got from David."The beta is just to get some feedback. It is the real thing and players can continue. This is just a three pronged introduction." So there you have it ... once the Beta version is launched on Dec 7th or 8th, we will be able to continue playing until it goes live with no lull in between. I just can't believe how quickly David has been responding to my emails ... it's amazing!
This is really awesome! Thanks MindStar, for the follow up and big thanks to David for replying to our questions!!
I see better communication with the community from a planet that does not exist yet then from planets that do :D
Kudos to David, for showing how professionals act. Delays are the name of the game for software, seeing someone actively informing us about the reasons behind them is something extremely rare especially when dealing with the Entropia Platform. My interest in Next Island just increased :D
Well I'll be damned, finally someone that is willing to share the real deal with the people. My hat goes off to Mr. Post for having the insight to know that the people he is speaking with are his (potential) customers. Now if we could only say the same about..... well no need to go there. I am greatly looking forward to their Beta launch of Next Island, if this is the kind of communication we can expect from Mr. Post and his gang then I have a feeling I may need to consider a new home planet. ;)
Nice. Well done MS9 and hats off t David Post. MA and FPC, are you taking notice of this? (hint, hint)
