Your input please: MSP to VideoStudio "PRO"?

[sjj1805]

Since the Release of MediaStudio 8 there have been two changes of ownership.
1st was Intervideo
2nd Corel.
Also since then Microsoft have released Microsoft Vista.

There have been changes of software development staff and also the New Owners Corel have to look at sales -v- production costs.
No matter what our members think, if Corel do not consider that the costs involved in producing either service packs or new version will create a profit they are not going to do so.

Tobie Openshaw is a cog in the wheel, He is attempting to establish from our members if there is sufficient support for a super duper version of VideoStudio in an attempt to bridge the gap between the Senior Management at Corel and our forum membership.

Tobie is trying to get us something better than what VideoStudio provides in the knowledge that future development of MediaStudio is dead.

You can either try and help Tobie fight his case (on our behalf) or you can simply mock and ridicule. If you choose the latter then if I were Tobie I do not think I would bother pushing the idea any further forward.

I am sure that many of our members are employed as opposed to being self employed. To those members I ask that you stop and think of the number of things you see at your workplace that you disagree with or think could be done differently. So what have you done about those things.
1. Nothing - why not - could it be because you thought you would be ridiculed?
2. Attempted to instigate changes - Did they take up your suggestion(s) and if so what resistance or thanks was given?

Come on, give Tobie some support on this suggestion.

[rwernyei]

Sorry Steve but I fully disagree with you on this one. Here are some reasons:

First, in numerous MUG posts in the past, Tobie has denied the title of being a marketing manager for Corel/Ulead and wants to be taken as the serious producer/editor, etc... By not being honest about ones job title raises a credibility issue with me. Next, what is the whole idea of this thread, its marketing? He put feelers out to see if members are willing to make sacrifices for a new product. He is preying on the desperation of existing MSP users knowing how long they have waited for a new release. Yes, Ulead has had many changes in its infrastructure due to merges, etc... but they still continue to make new consumer products. Hasn’t stopped them from making booth appearances, note CES next week. It’s been years since the MSP8 release, so I think they’ve had more than enough time to devise a plan on what direction the company is taking on professional-line video editing. The silence to their customers is insulting.

You wrote:
“Tobie is trying to get us something better than what VideoStudio provides in the knowledge that future development of MediaStudio is dead.”

I have never heard that MSP is dead. Is that an assumption or fact?
If this is so, why have we not heard this? We should be told outright, so we can either move on or decide to stick with Corel/Ulead. The same applies for COOL3D and DVD Workshop.

We are not ridiculing at all. Fellow members are providing alternatives for the company to be carefully considered. In fact, the comments made at the end of your post are off topic and have no relevance to this thread. To interject ones working environment in comparison is completely hypothetical. We are not employees of Corel/Ulead.

For argument sake, if you state our voice is important and we can make a difference; then why are these other mentioned products is the same boat as MSP? There are lengthy threads on this forum for each of these products and all have the same common denominator, Corel/Ulead’s silence.

[Devil]

In reality, the cost of developing a new MSP cannot be significantly higher than that of a new VS. My programming experience is that 30% of the cost of development is in the programming and 70% is the debugging and this is the same no matter what. IMHO, the best thing that Corel could do is to develop MSP and sell the full version for $100 and a cut-down version, called VS, for $60. They would sweep the market.

[troppo]

Hmm, I wonder if it is as economical as you think to bring MSP9 upto speed with competitors(whom have had continued development).
Sure Corel could release something *better* than MSP8 but I would rather purchase something competitive with other leading editors.
I fear Corel has waited too long, and the catch up required to be competitive is just too big.
Also, returns from VS would be much higher, so I'm sure they would focus on areas of maximum returns.
And you can only 'sweep the market' if the consumer knows you exist. This requires advertising, and time.

[Devil]

The best way of sweeping the market is by word of mouth. Have a better product at a considerably lower price than any competitor and it will happen. Most advertising is either for products that are not very good and/or that are too expensive for what they are.

[troppo]

True. But the key is to have a "better" product. If a product is truly better, then I don't mind paying what it is worth. The problem I see is that the owners of MSP have been asleep at the post, in an industry where development is critical. Now it appears to be in the 'too hard' basket to bring it into line with current developments. Now it has a long way to go to regain the cutting edge it once had.
And to compound matters, other editors such as vegas and premiere have marched on steadily, gaining market share and popularity. These things are not easily lost, as their fan base is as loyal as this one.
I bought MSP7 because of the price and performance. I bought MSP8 because I had MSP7. I'll only make that mistake once. For me it's back to evaluating the price/performance of my software.
So again I'll state, the challenge for Corel is not to bring out an upgraded product, but a truly competitive product, at a fair price, and be able to make a profit on it.
Good luck.

[sjj1805]

........I have never heard that MSP is dead. Is that an assumption or fact?
If this is so, why have we not heard this? We should be told outright, so we can either move on or decide to stick with Corel/Ulead. The same applies for COOL3D and DVD Workshop......

I will leave you to draw your own conclusions what is meant by "Other Software". For what it is worth MediaStudio and DVD Workshop are my favourite programs and to me it was a very sad email I received from Corel.

I Posted this in the We Want WS3 thread Thu Dec 13, 2007 6:08 pm

Following the development above regarding the removal of DVD Workshop 2 from the Corel Store I have contacted Corel. I have received confirmation that there will be no service packs and there are no plans to create a new version.

The software company will focus upon developments of VideoStudio and Movie Factory and "Other products" (From this I assume they include PhotoImpact).

Perhaps it is a sad day but at least this is confirmation of what we all expected and allows our members to make firm plans regarding any future upgrades of their DVD authoring software.

[sjj1805]

Just been to the new revamped Corel Website.

[rwernyei]

Thanks Steve.

I wish Corel would elaborate more on what "Other Products" are being discontinued. This way a new subject title could created for the intended forum as a sticky note. This way the members of this forum can deduce whether to purchase an unsupported product for their workflow needs.

With that said, I guess Tobie's quest for a better Video Studio product holds more merit. This is unfortunate because I was hoping(praying) for a "better" MSP product as Troppo has stated. I guess I need to start doing my research for professional-line NLE's and HD or BR DVD Authoring software.

I'm sure I'll still use my Ulead software as a crutch for deadline projects for the time being but I foresee that becoming far less in the future.

Thanks again.

[MrA]

I'm sure I'll still use my Ulead software as a crutch for deadline projects for the time being but I foresee that becoming far less in the future.

Thanks again.

Ahem, why I am now full throttle Final Cut Pro.. I can't wait, and I can't "bank" on ANY upgrages or "future" versions of ulead or corel products.

[troppo]

Ahem, why I am now full throttle Final Cut Pro

Yeah, me too. Bit of a learning curve, and a bit awkward in some areas, but also has lots of features I was waiting and hoping for in MSP9.[/quote]

[fandj]

You are really great guys and do not deserve a so disrespectful treatment from Corel.
I am also a great guy since I am spending 10 m to read the latest news in this Forum and even to write this note.My last posting, indeed.
Don't you see that Corel does not care about us?
I awaited more than what was reasonable for Corel to define their strategy after the acquisition. Now, Corel does not deserve any minute spent by us.
MSP is a dead product. In the XVI century a Portuguese king was killed in a war in North Africa. We are still hoping to see him coming back in a foggy day, so much we love him.Of course, he never came back and life continues. Corel put a lot of fog into it, but please do not be naive and expect anything from them. Just move on to reliable and respectful software developers. I have just done it (Premiére). Time is money...
I enjoyed the Forum and their members. Hope to see you in another Forum (Adobe?). I wish you a beautiful 2008.

[iafilm]

I accept the business logic that Corel/ULead needs to proceed with ONE development product with various levels. As an MSP8 user, what does VS need to become "Pro"? In brief, give it MSP8 capabilities and support the importing of MSP project files.
My last engagement with VS was using it for the ULead VS movie-making competition so the following is based on my memory of whatever version that was (10?). Impression: messy at first but I got what I needed out of it and I ended up thinking it was quite good for a consumer product. eg VS does deliver for teaching stop-frame animation but the capability is like an undocumented "Easter Egg" and I was only able to unlock the secret by asking questions on these forums.
My interests include impossibly ambitious fantasy and sci-fi epics using greenscreen. From what I remember, VS:
(1) needs to do better on moving path or whatever they are calling the VS equivalent - there needs to be the option of precise pixel control by entering x and y co-ordinates because the VS analogue mouse-dragging control I have seen is not precise enough.
(2) needs better chroma key support and variations - especially support for VFT plug in files eg the wonderful "Nicks Filters"
(3) needs to be precise on frame-accurate editing in timeline mode including giving a "ripple" capability.
(4) lose the cutie-pie user interface - lotsa blocks of colour "we're having so much jolly fun" design approach - and get with common professional conventions. I was amazed on evaluating the latest Adobe Premiere Pro CS3 that it seemed almost identical to MSP8 especially in its equivalent to the Effects Manager interface. I was instantly productive at a high level in Adobe because of my MSP8 experience. Achieve that with VS and we educators get interested in a fair price product where students can adapt easily to other systems they encounter as achieved with MSP8.
----------------------------
VS example including animation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXXzkygNSGI
MSP8 example with bluescreen preset: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fnJ_msEyb8
MSP8 example with Nicks VFT filters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3CCTI7fags

[sjj1805]

Thought those 3 films were brilliant. Why not make a post in our
Members Samples

[Karlos]

The net result of Corel's behavior for me is that I will never again purchase nor recommend any Corel product to anyone.

Thanks to everyone here for your help during my MSP 7 and MSP 8 days.

Karl