Great news!! I prepayed for $80 worth of Orbx products a month ago.That won't be happening again.From now on I'll use some self discipline and only order at end of year for 33% off sale.Thanks for the info! Cheers

Aerosoft ticked a bunch of guys off with the Bronco recently doing the same thing, pre order discount of five Euros and then the very next day after release it was 25% off. Makes the guys that pre order a little miffed I'm sure....... Some guys ordered this stuff six week ago (I pre ordered PAKT back then) and now a few days later it is 1/3 off. Just means I will never pre order again!

I'm not pre-ordering again. I've got enough Orbx products. I'll wait for the sale.

Patience is a virtue... or was it...I guess the sale is up to the publisher.

The sale is up to the publisher or up to the retailer (it's not clear at this point if Orbx or Flightsim Store initiatied the sale). The problem is that they were aggressive in promoting the 15 percent-off pre-pay discount for new releases. And there were a lot of new releases. So when people have shelled out a lot of money (even at a discount) for multiple products, and then you turn around and offer double the discount, the original buyers - who are some of your most loyal customers - get ticked off. Orbx and/or the retailer have the right to do it but in a small, relationship-driven community, it's not the world's best business practice.

John has posted his feelings on this matter at the ORBX forums. Enjoy the sale!

John has posted his feelings on this matter at the ORBX forums. Enjoy the sale!

Yes, he has no hesitation slashing and injuring friends and foes alike. Perhaps he doesn't know the difference. Too bad, still the best products though, even if some of the rest needs some work.

Yes, he has no problem slashing at friends and foes alike. Too bad, still the best products though, even if some of the rest needs some work.

That really surprised me. I think that we deserve better. But, who am I to judge?

He writes:"...why don't you show a bit more grace and be a little more understanding of how commerce works? The people who reacted negatively really do come across as being quite selfish and ungrateful and I am rather angered this morning to be honest..."Yes, but the customer reaction is also how commerce works.

OK guys sale is live - wahey

Quite the lesson for me to experience once again. It seems as humans we don't really understand and appreciate the truly good things we have, like loyal friends and family, until we lose them by neglect or abuse. I am tempted to become a cynic, but won't, because I don't want to become what I dislike, so grace (unmerited favour) must be extended to all who need it, whether received back or not.Kind regards,

The further point is this: they had every right, technically speaking, to run their sale. It's just that the sale shows poor understanding of customer psychology and poor management of customer relations. Here's the problem - in November, they were aggressive in promoting the pre-pay discount for new products, the argument being, buy now on pre-pay before the prices go up. There were an unprecendented number of new products on offer. So even at the discount price, people shelled out an awful lot of money to pre-pay. And now to turn around and offer a much deeper discount and say, well, sorry, that's the way commerce is - no, it isn't. That's the way commerce is when you don't understand or value relationships.His analogy about his X-Box purchase is off target. Yes, we all understand that products go on sale after Christmas. But we didn't understand that the argument for the pre-pay discount - buy now at lower prices, because after release they'll go higher - was going to be invalidated a couple of weeks later. It may not, technically, be a broken promise - but it comes close. It certainly involves changing the value proposition on the fly. And it involves telling longstanding customers - the most loyal ones, who are most likely to prepay - that we're not going to offer you any lasting advantage, whatever we might have told you before.BTW, I make my living advising companies about how to manage their reputations. I hope that if John reads this, he'll take it as professional commentary and not just the complaint of one of those annoying people who buy software products...

Amen!Learning is defined as a change in behavior as a result of experience.Here in FL, I can buy something, and if it's cheaper a few days later, I get the difference back. It's called buyers assurance.

I've been waiting for this sale to get the central Rockies. I dn't understand the hate and discontent...certainly a company chasing the Christmas dollars with a big post-Christmas sale isn't new...in fact it isn't even new for Orbx products. As always, if ya gotta have it RIGHT NOW you're going to pay a premium over the price at the next sale...and there will be a next sale.Good things come to those who wait...

Another +1And a +1 John Venema's response...Once I waited on Orbx and got the whole FTX Australia SP3 DVD for like $50 Aussie... sweetness.This time around I pre-paid New Zealand and bought US CRM full price... didn't really care so much waiting for NZSI and reasoning for US CRM was Jeff Williams Bush Pilot Brushup Plan. The Frank Church - River of No Return Wilderness Run was "sweetness" too.I'm a big boy... "both" times I knew what I was doing...I am supposed to be mad at "them" for not telling me precisely when to wait and when to buy? :(

Post removed.....too many beers on boxing day leads to things said in haste!