Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license
Posted on May 27, 2004 @ 11:59 am
From Six Apart:
Update on Licensing
05.27.2004It’s no secret that recent changes to the Movable Type license have received a mixed reception from bloggers (as the trackbacks to this post can attest). Many people have argued that the new pricing structure places an unfair financial burden on those users who maintain multiple blogs, as well as those blogs with multiple authors. We have kept a close watch on the feedback our licensing changes have generated throughout the blogosphere, and we have already incorporated many bloggers’ suggestions into our updated license agreements. As we continue to evaluate future options (both generated internally and by our users), the Movable Type license will continue to evolve.
That being said, we are very pleased to announce the latest changes to the Movable Type pricing structure today. In an effort to ensure that the software’s license does not discourage our users from maintaining multiple blogs or hosting blogs with multiple authors, we are switching over to what we believe to be a revolutionary a new pricing plan: pay-per-word pricing.
With the release of Movable Type 3.0014d, users will pay as they blog on a per-word basis (billing will be handled through the increasingly versatile TypeKey service). As a result, the license no longer penalizes those users who choose to maintain multiple blogs or host blogs with multiple authors. Instead, all users pay equally based on how much they use Movable Type.
Of course, we recognize that not all words are created equally. Therefore, the new pricing structure breaks down as follows:
Prices:
- Prepositions, conjunctions, articles (definite and indefinite), interjections: 1¢ per word
- Pronouns: 2¢ per word
- Nouns (common): 4¢ per word
- Nouns (proper): 6¢ per word
- Verbs (passive): 5¢ per word
- Verbs (action): 7¢ per word
- Adjectives and adverbs: 8¢ per word
- Proper nouns comprising names of other blogging software (i.e. “WordPress” or “Expression Engine”): 30¢ per word
- Gerunds: TBA
Naturally, punctuation and HTML markup will remain absolutely free. Furthermore, hyphenated words will count as a single word for billing purposes (if the hyphenated form is the preferred usage according to the Oxford English Dictionary).
As an example of the new pricing plan, suppose you posted an entry to your blog reading, “I had a cheese sandwich for lunch today. Then, I got behind the slowest woman in the grocery-store line! Grrrr!” By my count (TypeKey will handle the sentence diagramming automatically in MT3.0014d), this entry contains 6 adjectives/adverbs, 4 nouns, 3 articles, 2 passive verbs, 2 pronouns, 2 prepositions, and 1 interjection. Therefore, under the new license, your entry would cost a grand total of 84¢ — no matter how many blogs or authors you have! Now, that’s not so bad, is it?
As a special bonus, MT3.0014d beta testers will receive the words “movable” and “type” for use in their posts free of charge.
We hope that these pricing changes will put to rest the notion of Six Apart as a company uncommitted to offering users of Movable Type a pricing structure that is both practical and, above all else, fair to all bloggers. Moreover, we look forward to hearing your thoughts on these developments.
At least it’s good to know that Six Apart is taking user feedback into account!
Needless to say, this post is intended as satire. It’s not even intended as particularly mean-spirited satire; I loved my time with Movable Type, and the new license had very little to do with my switch to WordPress. Just having some fun…
Posted by Jess | Filed Under Blickity-Blog, Web Slinging |
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Brilliant!
Ouch. (And very funny, too.)
Movable License
Jess at Apropos of Something reveals the latest incarnation of the Movable Type 3.0 License. Read it and weep….
What’s the price for expletives?? Is it word length, or how many variations of one word you can make? What if you use it as an adverb, noun, verb and adjective all in the same sentence?
First he takes on a Jezebel of the blogosphere, and then proceeds to give licensing advice for SixApart. Considering the things I’ve had …
This is just TOO good not to share. (Take it in the spirit it is intended.) …
Jess has a new spin on the Movable Type licensing fiasco. Take a look …
New Changes To MovableType License
Six Apart announce new changes to their licenses: "With the release of Movable Type 3.0014d, users will pay as they blog on a per-word basis (billing will be handled through the increasingly versatile TypeKey service). As a result, the license…
Changed again
I changed my mind again. You do not have to have a TypeKey account in order to comment here. However,…
HTML markup is free? Bring on the FONT tags!
Pay For Word
Apropos of Something? Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license
Somebody has a sense of humor about the whole MT licensing fiasco.
MT & Licenses
Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license…
Haha hilarious, hope you pinged 6A with that LOL
Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license, via Matt Mull …
hey I though of something! maybe mt can pay YOU if you link to certain websites or mention them in your posts! something like google textads
Absolutely Hilarious
Apropos of Something has an absolutely hilarious post regarding the new changes in the Moveable Type license. It’s been on everyones mind, but this takes the whole thing to a whole new level, and brings in a pricing structure that guarentee’s succes…
Yes-No?
I know MT is becoming more business oriented. They took the word personal out of personal publishing system. They took out the feature to have multiple blogs because some of us are giving out free blogs for to our friends. SO what is wrong with that? W…
It’s Satire, Of Course
Six Apart announces pay-per-word blogging license…
MT ¶óÀ̼¾½º À̽´
[via Apropos of Somthing] Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license MTÀÇ ¶óÀ̼¾½º À̽´°¡ Á¡Á¡ ´õ ¶ß°Å¿î °¨ÀÚ°¡ µÇ¾î°¡´Â °Í °°½À´Ï´Ù. ¼³¸¶ ´Ù¸¥ Åø·Î ¿Å°Ü¾ß ÇÏ´Â ±×·± ºÒÇàÇÑ ÀÏÀº »ý±âÁö ¸»¾Æ¾ß ÇÒÅÙµ¥¿ä.. . MT 3.0 ¼Ò°³¿¡ ºÙÀº…
Six Apart updates MT license
They had me at yes.
Too funny. Jess has an update on Movable Types new licensing struc …
Hi, guys.
Please see it more, its just joke.
LoL.
I can see the first exploit already…
<p id=”may272003″>†</p>
p#may2002007:before {
content: “It’s no secret that recent changes to the Movable Type license have received a mixed reception from bloggers”
}
Sure it won’t work in IE or Google, but other than that I think it’s a great idea!
Hey the stole my joke (but did a better job)
They stole my joke! (but actually they did it better than I did. I love it!) (saw it on Matt’s…
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MovableType Announces Revolutionary Pricing Scheme
Six Apart announces more changes to Movable Type license With the release of Movable Type 3.0014d, users will pay as they blog on a per-word basis (billing will be handled through the increasingly versatile TypeKey service). As a result, the license no…
I guess the divorce is final.
email, mt and eggs in hell
is the next wave to catch?… - free email, with 2 gigs of storage (i signed up for mine, of course): AventureMail.com a funny look at a possible mt charging scenario (at least commas, are free): apropos of something…
[...] General Funny Technology — craigk @ 2:25 pm An excellent description of movable type’s new licensing arrangment. Good times. [...]