1 hour ago, alanw2005 said:

When you have excellent add-ons like what PMDG makes, MSFS sells flight sim software. So buying direct does help Microsoft. 

...and if income from the Marketplace falls the pace of development slackens. 

...and if income from the Marketplace fails...

Do you see how this works?

54 minutes ago, DD_Arthur said:

...and if income from the Marketplace falls the pace of development slackens. 

...and if income from the Marketplace fails...

Do you see how this works?

... and if Marketplace revenue declines too much, Microsoft/Asobo could respond by tightening rules around direct payware and freeware installs into the Community folder, or even by phasing the Community folder out entirely.

Edited February 2Feb 2 by Nemo

1 hour ago, DD_Arthur said:

...and if income from the Marketplace falls the pace of development slackens. 

...and if income from the Marketplace fails...

Do you see how this works?

If MSFS 2024 doesn't have good, high fidelity add-ons, then it fails. If add-on developers don't make money, then they fail. Do you see how this works?

Edited February 2Feb 2 by alanw2005

It’s a complex relationship.

The MSFS, the developers, and the Marketplace seem to be locked in a symbiotic relationship in which they depend on one another for survival of the (overall) ecosystem.

In turn, we, the simmers and the gamers, the PC users and Xbox users, all benefit from a strong and growing ecosystem.

8 minutes ago, P_7878 said:

It’s a complex relationship.

The MSFS, the developers, and the Marketplace seem to be locked in a symbiotic relationship in which they depend on one another for survival of the (overall) ecosystem.

In turn, we, the simmers and the gamers, the PC users and Xbox users, all benefit from a strong and growing ecosystem.

Exactly! MSFS doesn't mind add-on developers selling direct to consumer. They realize that for them to thrive, so do their partners. 

There are 2 types of add-on buyers. Type 1 wants the 1 click convenience of buying from MSFS MP. They don't want the hassle of copying items to folders and using add-on installation software or operation centres. They are afraid of glitches and want the ease and convenience of buying from MP.

Type 2 is the tweak and tinkerer. They don't mind rolling up their sleeves.

Buying direct helps the developer. They get more cash flow to continue developing high quaility products. MS knows that they will capture the sales of buyers than just want to do one click while in MSFS 2024.

The benefit to buying direct is that you usually get updates sooner than when they are available in MP. As with PMDG, iFly and Fenix you get their nice operations software for managing updates and their vast library of free liveries. 

I remember when Google came out with their own branded. Google phone users always got OS updates before Samsung, Motorola, etc.

The PMDG 777 for MS2024 came out direct quite a bit sooner than reaching MP. The 738 launched on MP fairly quickly but liveries were quite a bit later. On MSFS the PMDG 738 liveries are only free if you download the 4 gb plane instead of streaming it. I bet if you bought the 738 direct from PMDG you can stream the aircraft and get all the liveries. 

When my PMDG installation glitched, I bought all the liveries from MP for $18 USD. I don't mind. Because now I have the option to stream the 738 and get rid of 4 gb on my PC.