"Life-time license are a dead-end in business terms...

[ssj100]

Here's what a Returnil moderator has to say about the matter:
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showpost ... ostcount=3

Life-time license are a dead-end in business terms and lead more to failure or an inordinate focus on revenue generation at the expense of development and support when the pool of available customers becomes static. We plan to be here for the long haul and to do this we need to have a sustainable model.

However, I don't think this really applies to "one-man team developers" like with Sandboxie haha. Returnil are a company and need to feed that company properly to stay "alive". As far as I know, tzuk is pretty much alone in the primary development and support of Sandboxie (although we have some very skilled and highly knowledgeable forum members here). Therefore, I don't think tzuk needs to make pay outs to feed other people's families haha.

I suppose Sandboxie is the exception that proves the rule perhaps. You'd be hard pressed to find another community of members like on Sandboxie forums that volunteer their help so openly and with such dedication.

Finally, the fact that Sandboxie has this thread here speaks for how much this community cares about the product:
http://www.sandboxie.com/phpbb/viewforum.php?f=22

[Guest10]

The Returnil moderator's message sounds a lot like a Returnil supervisor's message, when I asked why the virtualization feature of my paid version of Returnil 2008 quit working:

Life-time licensing can be attractive at the start, but eventually there will come a time where the pool of new customers can no longer provide adequate resources for development and product support. This leads inevitably to a degeneration in support quality and longer development cycles as the company starts focusing on revenue generation rather than on what is really important to the long term health of the company: satisfied and protected customers.

I wasn't satisfied or protected at that point.
They buried the fact that it's "subscription ware", on their web site. Too bad that wasn't listed on the Download page.
Meanwhile, MitchE323 reported that his free version of the same product was still working as always.
Once you register the program though, you can't go back to the free version because it remembers your (expired) registration information.
So at that point, you buy a license for their new version or you switch to someone else's program.
Now using Shadow Defender (on demand only).

[H3*]

Lifetime is always the coder/s lifetime s/he code this or that thing, or sell it to a big company that totally destroy it with 8-9000 %
more code of just pure crap!, or 6 feet underground. We never know if tzuk one day sell it for a huge pot of money, we can just
hope he doesn't

[Guestttttttttt]

I would be perfectly happy paying $15 or so a year, more than happy (it's a bargin!.. the lifetime license is just too good.)
If i was Tzuk, I'd make it a yearly buy

[karlyle]

I would be perfectly happy paying $15 or so a year, more than happy (it's a bargin!.. the lifetime license is just too good.)
If i was Tzuk, I'd make it a yearly buy

Tzuk was prooven, more than one time, to be a very honest, responsible, and good person.

I once wrote about him saving my computer many times, and now I feel I must do it again.

a lifetime license, means, in my opinion, that this precious person IS NOT GREEDY, and he wants to improve the life of every USER, who uses the INTERNET.

please, hear/read again Tzuk's interview. he said, that the idea behind writing SANDBOXIE was the fact, that his computer was attacked by a virus.

that's why it's a lifetime license, and not yearly renewed. you should be thankfull.

[Franck]

Returnil marketing strategy is totally dumb, if I may.
I got to know returnil ages before I ever heard about SBIE. I was up buying a license because I found it was an innovative and clever approach to security. But...

I can understand a oner-time payment doesn't grant lifetime updates. But I can't understand it doesn't grant a lifetime usage right.

Returnil wants $$$ each and every year? Well, they never got a penny from me, just because of their stupid licensing/pricing policy. I stuck to the free version... (then anyway it got bloated with a pseudo embedded antivirus which was just a pain in the a... so from then on I wanted an alternative!)

SBIE licensing is really generous... and apart the fact it's a great product, it's one of the reason why I bought it. It sounds normal to me to reward nice and generous developer.
Thanks Tzuk

[H3*]

you can't go back to the free version because it remembers your (expired) registration information.

Why not? it's easy if you know your tools, why let em fool you?

and like all here, I also prefer lifetime license, I wouldn't buy my car more than one time?

[lwc]

I think the lifetime program is a problem only if it's not balanced by a referral/affiliate program. That way, the pool is still in constant move.

In my opinion, a referral discount would have really helped reselling the software. Keep in mind without reselling Sandboxie's market is only the type of users who actively search for something like Sandboxie on their own. With reselling, you also get users who aren't like that but have at least one acquaintance who is. Plus like you said, Sandboxie is a one man operation. With reselling, you get lots of free workers.

[tzuk]

Thanks for the all compliments.

[Kid Shamrock]

Personally, I wouldn't mind making a $5-$10 yearly payment to help support continued development of this excellent program. What I don't like is having to pay for software that charges you full price or more every year for licensing even if little has been done to improve it.

[lwc]

3 years later, Sandboxie moved to Returnil's model.

[PepC4U2]

I think Tzuk has been very generous with his license agreement. Sandboxie is a very Secure/Solid program and worth the investment.

As far as Returnil goes in the free version look at the subscription status date (lasts for 1 year) and re-install the program.

[ssj100]

A pity, but tzuk has done pretty well allowing lifetime licenses for the past 9 years. And good to see he is honoring current lifetime license holders.

[Buster]

And good to see he is honoring current lifetime license holders.

He could be sued otherwise.

[Username]

Ronen does his business alright as he finds it best, yet it's sad even having such a mild restriction policy there're so very many those who abuse this kind act. I'm talking about numerous hacks/keygens who steal from the author, let alone some owners decline to remove the offensive material...

The magic circle: if Ronen is about improving his anti-piracy then the legal users (both paid and free) are going to suffer badly. Once again.