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Bloggers Assail Movable Type's New Pricing Scheme

Posted by michael on from the slash-still-free dept.

cioxx writes "An immensely popular weblog publishing tool, Movable Type, has announced a new pricing model based on "support level, number of authors permitted, and the number of weblogs permitted per license". MT3D (Developer Edition) for non-commercial users has drifted away from its full-featured, free predecessor and managed to upset many blog authors whose entry summaries can be seen via the trackback feature originating from the initial MT3D announcement. Is this a case of bait-n-switch, or simply a company trying to capitalize on its dominant market share? WordPress (GPL), which is an equally powerful CMS, seems like a perfect candidate for those who are considering a switch to a non-crippled, free alternative."

9 of 391 comments (clear)

  1. No big deal -- stick with version 2 by crashnbur · · Score: 4, Informative

    You can upgrade to as high as version 2.66.1, and the new pricing scheme won't affect your Movable Type site. That's what we're doing at Polstate.com.

    By the way, shameless plug:

    Polstate.com is the Political State Report, a web site held together by contributors from each state (US) who report on grassroots and statewide political news, especially when relevant to local and state elections. We offer a different flavor of political news, distinct from most other blogs and news sites that focus on the Presidency, war on terror, and national economy.

  2. Oh really now by liquidsin · · Score: 4, Informative

    Or, we could all just RTFSite, which apparently our dear submitter didn't do, and see that they clearly state that they will still offer a free version. I read the news yesterday (since I've been waiting for the 3.0 release to install it) and was slightly disturbed by the "pricing scheme", but I actually read the whole thing, and it does state that they will still offer a free version (the google cache hasn't been updated since the new stuff has been posted, so it's pretty pointless to check it out).

    --
    do not read this line twice.
    1. Re:Oh really now by Eezy+Bordone · · Score: 5, Informative
      There is a v3 free version for a single author/single blog, this is crippled from their current free version. My current setup wouldn't be able to use the v3 free version, I have two blogs (one is a sub-blog for book reviews) and host two blogs for friends, so have a total of 3 authors. The free version doesn't officially support this. If the Trott's are *wink-wink-nudge-nudging* that people with my type of setup can still run their free software they shouldn't have written their license to specifically forbid it.

      That said, it's obvious to anyone with a pair of brain celss that this pricing structure is to make their Typepad service more attractive for casual bloggers and non-techies. If you you're willing to get your elbows dirty you can run a blog on your own machine from home with the free version.

      --

      -EB

      Do you ever walk alone like a drifter in the dark?

  3. Re:Pass the crack by levell · · Score: 4, Informative

    Not only do they still have a free version but also, no-one is forced to upgrade. It seems people aren't interested in whether it's free as in speech but when it's free as in beer, changes in the pricing structure bring bitter recriminations.

    --
    Struggling to find a day everyone can make? WhenShallWe.com
  4. hack it! by IshanCaspian · · Score: 4, Informative

    Since MT is written entirely in perl and other non-compiled languages, how hard could it possibly be to hack these limitations out of the free version? I'd bet you just have to comment out a few simple checks, and then distribute a patch...via your blog, of course. :)

    --

    But there is another kind of evil that we must fear most... and that is the indifference of good men.
  5. Free Software Blog Alternatives by BrianWCarver · · Score: 4, Informative

    b2evo This is what I would recommend people check out first.
    BBlog (requires PHP version 4.1 or greater & MySQL version 3.23 or greater)
    Bit 5 Blog
    blosxom (only need ability to run CGI scripts)
    drupal.org (mySQL or similar required)
    LiveJournal.org
    MyPHPblog/Simplog (seems to require MySQL would have to download to be sure.)
    Nucleus (requires PHP version 4.0.6 or higher and access to a MySQL database version 3.23.38 or higher)
    Pivot (only php required)
    pLog (requires PHP 4.1.x or higher and MySQL 3.1.x or higher)
    Scoop (requires Apache with mod_perl and mySQL)
    TikiWiki (requires PHP 4.1+ and MySQL. Very powerful software.)
    WordPress (requires PHP version 4.1 or greater and MySQL version 3.23.23 or greater.)

    --
    Like Digital Freedoms? Then donate to EFF before they're gone.
  6. Re:MovableType != Open Source by HealYourChurchWebSit · · Score: 5, Informative

    Ummm ... while MT has been 'open code' ... MovableType has NEVER been Open Source ... says so right in their documentation.

    --
    --- have you healed your church website?
  7. Re: Not just the cost by arc.light · · Score: 4, Informative
    As I stated here, I paid $150 for a commercial license for MT 2.6. On December 22nd of 2003, a post to MT's site stated:
    The next version of Movable Type will be version 3.0, a significant and free upgrade.
    And
    Movable Type 3.0 will be a free download and upgrade.
    It isn't a free upgrade. The promotional price for the cheapest commercial MT license is $199. My earlier purchase of a commercial MT 2.6 license knocks $20 off of that. 6A might think they're going to move us to the presumably more lucrative TypePad hosted service, but many of us are simply going to switch to other software.

    - Derek

  8. Moving from MT to WP - A guide. by 2fargon · · Score: 5, Informative

    If you wanna come to wordpress, you might find this moving guide handy with all the details about what needs to be done before, during and after the move.