Paid mods are now available on the workshop

[Hazado]

There is a lot of discussion around donations but what about ad-based revenue? I remember that being said but not discussed, are there any problems with it?

thats how minecraft does it

[gpthree]

If you log into Paypal and use the 'Send money to friends and family' option, depending on the payment type you choose, there are no fees for you or the recepient.

[z929669]

Actually if they make an update to incorporate the .dll into the core game they will be able to do that!

 

They actually can make any .dll based solution part of the game if they so want... the problem is the legal stuff again, hence why they most likely do not want to do that. It would mean royalties after all. :) 

I have never understood why Bethesda never approached the SKSE team (and sheson) to offer them jobs or compensation for massively extending the game and its capacity and then incorporating these mods as integral patches.

 

I'm fairly sure there will be another shot at it. This time a bit more consultative. And probably with a bit more warning than what was essentially a crowbar across the face sort of deal as this try was.

 

I hope so anyway.

Definitely will happen, but only after they get their heads around it this time ... and they will bring in key community members to help, I'll bet.

 

All mod managers should have a donate to mod author button build in.

I endorse in the managers, so I should be able to donate in them as well.

THIS ... I think this should be a MO feature request if not already ... everyone go and vote that up!

 

Am not ashamed to admit I've handed out about 12 donations in the past few days... And will do so again next pay period.

The community is definitely thinking about donations to contributors right now. STEP even got a spike of donations in the last few days (but we still don't regularly get the $/month we need for hosting, and I always cover the diff myself )

 

With the setup as it is on Nexus at the moment, it's VERY easy to miss donation buttons. You need to make a conscious effort to hunt them down. 

 

If what Dark0ne is saying's going to happen does happen that will be a good thing and will hopefully up the donation rates.

As I posted on his latest article ... improving the donation system and making it much more prominent will buy the loyalty of MAs who may well get more compensation freely given than via required purchase. There would be at least as much incentive to supply one's mod on Nexus same as on SW.

 

Wow, I'm shocked they actually did that.  Honestly, I would like to see them try again.  They really do need to engage the community in a more ongoing way, talk to more modders, look at what is really involved in modding Skyrim, and figure out a way to make this truly work.

 

The increased show of donations was pretty nice, but I also suspect that it's now over and donation rates will once again flatline.

I also hope this prompts Nexus to continue thinking about adding a shared ad revenue system for mod authors.  I hope I'm proven wrong, but I just don't think the donation system is ever going to prove particularly sufficient as a means of financial support for mod makers.

 

STEP will explore some ways to improve donation rates for MAs as well. We can see about providing links to donations for accepted mods and mention donations to MAs more prominently in general.

 

I apologize for the confusion. I realize this is because the mod author hasn't setup the donate button or doesn't want to accept donations. It's just that I think I owe them at least something more than clicking the Endorse button for all their fine work.

 

Mangaclub is another without a Donate button that I think should have one. Speaking of which, where's the tip jar on STEP?

 

STEP Extended and all the packs are awesome thanks to guys (although I still haven't worked up the courage to try my hand at mixing SR:LE and REGS) and the support here is excellent.

See top of forum, top of wiki main page, and top of wiki STEP guide ;) ... we also have one hiding somewhere on our Nexus page

 

Hmm, not sure who you are referring to here. But I have the greatest respect for the mod authors who listed their mods for sale. You only have to read Beths blog today to see the vision they were aspiring to. Under certain circumstances it could work and be better for the entire community. In reality it was a disaster mainly due to the lack of ANY direction and communication with the community. These mod authors - who in some cases are the best we have - have been thrown to the wolves. This to me is the saddest part of this whole sordid affair.

I also posted as much on Dark0ne's most recent blog post: MAs should have a structured payment system for mods that meet objective, clearly-defined minimum criteria. A pay-for system and/or a good donations system would be good, but the former needs to be implemented in such a way that it does not cause significant reactive panic and rancor. The half-baked recent attempt at implementing was just scary and probably did lasting damage for some key members of the community that probably will never again be members of the TES/Fallout modding community as a result.

[Octopuss]

If you log into Paypal and use the 'Send money to friends and family' option, depending on the payment type you choose, there are no fees for you or the recepient.

Only there's no way to do that when you don't have any contact information when clicking on the donate button on Nexus.

[gpthree]

Only there's no way to do that when you don't have any contact information when clicking on the donate button on Nexus.

When clicking the donate button you get the persons email address on the paypal screen.

[Neovalen]

I just left this note on his thread.

 

"Thank you for releasing this even though you didn't have to do so and for your past work. Despite me being against the paywall system I was never against the authors themselves. I'm sorry you got burned, it was undeserved and good luck in the future. Let is hope this is a learning opportunity for the community to be more supportive of its contributors."

[hellanios]

true story of gaming industry:

 

 

Edited April 28, 2015 by hellanios

[dstansberry]

The thread for SkyUI indicates that the new version will be uploaded to the Nexus soon as well. "The work is done anyway and I'm not a sore loser, so I'll release 5.0 eventually after SKSE has been updated," Shlangster says.

 

Also, I just got the nicest note from Isoku regarding a small donation I made. in it, he writes: "If the paid workshop was still active, I would have liked to thank you by sharing my timed workshop-exclusive revisions of Wet and Cold and iNeed for free. However, this is no longer the case so all I can give back are my words of gratitude and a promise that the latest revisions of Wet and Cold and iNeed will be on the Nexus soon."

I hope I'm not out of line in posting it here (if I am, please tell me and I'll delete it), but that's the first I'd heard from him one way or the other on the subject of returning.

[Hazado]

I purchased the newest versions of Isoku's mods before the SW removed them. After I was refunded, I donated the money back to Isoku. It was only right thing to do in my opinion.

[oqhansoloqo]

I, for one perhaps, am somewhat glad for all the crazy people who went mad over the whole ordeal, even though I was not one of them and I cringed at reading some of the comments myself.  If people had been more reasonable and mellow about paywall situation, we'd still have the paywall situation and it would have really f'd up the effective support ability of Skyrim modding (not going to go into details, as they have been already talked about here ad nauseum).  I got a good laugh at seeing those ansii posts, and did actually feel a sense of "fighting-the-man" when I saw them.  I usually am for "the man", but in this case I was not.  While I think that Isoku and Chesko didn't think enough about the social ramifications in their decisions to support the program (Chesko publicly communicated well afterwards, while Isoku's response was poorly done), I also feel somewhat bad for them.  I say "somewhat" because I think they stupidly put themselves in the "firing range" and I disagree with their decisions regarding being part of the paywall situation prior to the day it was put up.  After that, I admire the way that Chesko handled himself.  And while I appreciate that Isoku did respond publicly after the paywall went up, I did not care much for the content of Isoku's initial public response - it seemed kind of weak.  On the other hand, after reading about his personal response to the person that donated, I admire that.

 

Anyway, no vandalism occurred and no one physically got hurt (as far as I know)... So it was just nasty words and feelings hurt (but I guess money expected by the mod authors was not collected either - well, "boo hoo" to that...).  I'm glad it all happened mainly because of the effect it had on the companies (Valve/Bethesda/etc) involved.  They got HAMMERED with RAGING protest and discontent.  LOL I say good for that.  They missed out the most on the money, seeing that they would have gotten 75% (collectively) for doing hardly anything...

Edited April 28, 2015 by oqhansoloqo

[Greg]

 

They claim there's a link between allowing Oblivion to be modded and having to change the rating from Teen to Mature, "costing us millions of dollars." Does it cost millions of dollars to secure a Mature rating, or are they just talking about the loss of potential revenue from teens? I think they are forgetting to acknowledge they extended their audience age range upward, and give too much credit to the loss of the teen audience merely due to the M rating labels.

I think there are a couple of things at play here that casts serious doubt on this assertion. The rating given to a game is based on the content in the game itself. How can a rating even remotely be based on mods that don't yet exist? Even if the ratings board is using crystal balls and Tarot cards to attempt to predict future mods available for a game, shouldn't Skyrim have a XXX rating given all the mods available on LoversLab? This is nothing more than corporate snake oil in a lame attempt to blame someone else for alleged market losses.

 

I also seriously doubt changing the rating from Teen to Mature cost Bethesda millions of dollars because of two very important factors at play here: 1) corporations inflate the numbers by claiming that (all teens in in the group) would have been eligible to purchase the game if it had a Teen rating directly representing one lost sale for every member of the group; and 2) corporations always use an inflated price (close to the retail price) of a product to further inflate reported market losses. In other words, these figures aren't even close to reality.

[Jverv]

I donated to Isoku today as well and his response to those that donated to him now and in the past was truly classy. He also mentions releasing the new wet and cold and ineed on the nexus. One thing coming out of this is a real view into how solid the modders are. I have many modders to catch up with, as well as a more often donation to STEP (great community, proud to be a part of it after this).

 

I'm personally glad that I am now more aware of the donate functions of both the nexus and STEP. I hit Chesko up again too. It will be a true shame if this whole mess makes Chesko step away from modding. He is a true gem to the community. As to the donations, people should not over think amounts IMO. If 2,000 people donate $.50 that can add up. Even if those that don't have the means donate more, it is really the thought that counts i feel. As a few modders have pointed out it is not the intention to make money but a fulfillment of a hobby and passion. I love to be able to acknowledge their work and dedication with something more then a nexus endorsement. It's not that most of the modders want or even need it, it's just one of the only ways to show them gratitude. Or at least one of the only ways the internet allows it.

Edited April 28, 2015 by Jverv

[cstarkey42]

Here's someone whose heart is in the right place:  https://steamcommunity.com/app/72850/discussions/0/611704730328798977/?tscn=1430234103#p1

 

( Here's where it ultimately leads:  https://www.change.org/p/chesko-skyrim-modders-chesko-and-skyrim-modders-please-come-back )

 

Of course, reading the comments will make you feel like last weekend never ended...  You've been warned.

Edited April 29, 2015 by cstarkey42

[GrantSP]

There is a lot of discussion around donations but what about ad-based revenue? I remember that being said but not discussed, are there any problems with it?

The problem, as I see it, is there needs to be a centralised support network on the hosting site in question. The ad-revenue would need to be directed from the ads to a central deposit then forwarded to the individuals. I see no practical way for individuals to host ads on the page of their mod. To do so would require directing revenue to their own servers, etc. I would love to be shown a way that does work for individuals.

 

Now since Nexus has explicitly stated they don't want to go down that path, and I assume most other mod hosting sites are in a similar situation, ad-revenue couldn't be implemented.

 

Every solution that adds another layer of support/control to the financial stream will hinder the final outcome. We are talking about such minuscule amounts that they will be absorbed by the administration before they flow to the author.

 

Admittedly, there are some great mods that all of us wouldn't think twice about giving a couple of dollars to, and they will benefit from whatever system is in place, but for that small mod that is equally great but minor in its workings, are we going to reward the author in the same way?

[Neovalen]

Here's someone whose heart is in the right place: https://steamcommunity.com/app/72850/discussions/0/611704730328798977/?tscn=1430234103#p1

 

( Here's where it ultimately leads: https://www.change.org/p/chesko-skyrim-modders-chesko-and-skyrim-modders-please-come-back )

 

Of course, reading the comments will make you feel like last weekend never ended... You've been warned.

Seeing the petition with 27 signatures in 22 hours is what's got me down.