There's clearly money to be made, but as you say, there's a great deal of risk involved. We've all seen how risky it is even if you're making tangible stuff (i.e., the pandora), which there is proven high demand for and people even willing to pay up front via "pre order." Now, scale that down to something like a professionally-produced "Armchair Arcade" DVD about videogames, which I imagine would only sell 30 or so copies at best. Heck, I'd be shocked if we sold a dozen.
The "cold dunk" reality here is that it's hard enough just getting people to click and read or watch something great for FREE. Trying to get them to pay for something mediocre is like taking a bath in warm chocolate sauce and then rushing out naked in the cold night air to buy a Hershey bar.
There's clearly money to be made, but as you say, there's a great deal of risk involved. We've all seen how risky it is even if you're making tangible stuff (i.e., the pandora), which there is proven high demand for and people even willing to pay up front via "pre order." Now, scale that down to something like a professionally-produced "Armchair Arcade" DVD about videogames, which I imagine would only sell 30 or so copies at best. Heck, I'd be shocked if we sold a dozen.
The "cold dunk" reality here is that it's hard enough just getting people to click and read or watch something great for FREE. Trying to get them to pay for something mediocre is like taking a bath in warm chocolate sauce and then rushing out naked in the cold night air to buy a Hershey bar.
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com