Maintenance costs

I recall having an online 'argument' with some out there that Epicor's poor support process was going to hurt them during this recession as companies tightened their belts and started dropping the cash cow (to Epicor) of Maintenance agreements & fees.

They surely must already be experiencing a drop in prospects for new installation purchases (as everyone in the industry is).

If they don't get their act together and truly start providing value added support for these maintenance fees, they are going to hit serious cash problems (and that won't be good for us that are already invested in them).

Bravo Rob for having the stones to drop Maintenance. You can always go back on it in the future. (They'll try to exact their pound of flesh from you if you do so - for having the gall to drop it to begin with - but hold firm. EVERYTHING is negotiable.)

(the other) Rob

--- On Tue, 12/9/08, Robert Rodiguez <robert@...> wrote:

From: Robert Rodiguez <robert@...>
Subject: [Vantage] Re: maintenance costs
To: vantage@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, December 9, 2008, 12:21 PM






Maintenance Costs: (my two cents)

Why is it a maintenance cost on not a support cost? I think if you
look at the rest of the software world (outside of those in the
accounting world), epicor's practices of charging to support current
versions in unusual. If there is a bug within there system and that
bug prevents the user from using the system they purchased, the user
should be supported through the fix of that bug. For instance
Microsoft does not charge for updates. That said, I believe it is
entirely fair to charge for new versions and/or enhancements to and
existing product.

I could not renew my maintenance contract for 2008 because of the
cost, lack of response from my CAM and lack of response from some
epicor dept heads I spoke with at the 2007 Perspectives. I wish the
maintenance wasn't priced to gouge the small company that add users
and/or modules. I never heard from my CAM when I didn't renew the
maintenance contract, not even a call to see if I would renew this
year. Makes me feel like a number.....

And we're all about ROI right? I had a hard time finding enough
return to justify the expense.

There are some brillant people working for epicor and they are the
reason the software is so successful. Epicor's business practices are
what holds them from the next level of success.

Rob

-

-- In vantage@yahoogroups .com, "Lindquist, Pam" <plindquist@ ...> wrote:
>
> Has anyone else noticed that Epicor is tacking on 3% to our annual
> maintenance billing for CPI adj?
> Have you been able to avoid paying this?
>
> Pam
> Metro
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
Has anyone else noticed that Epicor is tacking on 3% to our annual
maintenance billing for CPI adj?
Have you been able to avoid paying this?

Pam
Metro


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
I'm not a lawyer, but the question of whether or not a company has been able to avoid paying a particular item charged by another company (the second question) could be a dangerous question. Perhaps simply answering the question will not cause problems. However, if a number of companies, as a result of this discussion, decided to not pay the charge, it might be construed as collusion or price fixing. Again, I am not a lawyer, so this is not a legal opinion, and perhaps I am being overly sensitive and cautious. Just to be safe, though, I will negotiate any deals and pricing with Epicor on my own, without reference to what deals or prices other companies are getting.

Thom Rose
Controller
Electric Mirror LLC
HOTEL LUXURY

"The World Leader in Back-lit Mirrors & Mirror TV Technology"

T 425 776-4946
F 425 491-8200
A 11831 Beverly Park Rd, Bldg D, Everett, WA 98204 USA
www.electricmirror.com<http://www.electricmirror.com>


From: vantage@yahoogroups.com [mailto:vantage@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Lindquist, Pam
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2008 6:14 AM
To: vantage@yahoogroups.com
Subject: {Disarmed} [Vantage] maintenance costs


Has anyone else noticed that Epicor is tacking on 3% to our annual
maintenance billing for CPI adj?
Have you been able to avoid paying this?

Pam
Metro

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Maintenance Costs: (my two cents)

Why is it a maintenance cost on not a support cost? I think if you
look at the rest of the software world (outside of those in the
accounting world), epicor's practices of charging to support current
versions in unusual. If there is a bug within there system and that
bug prevents the user from using the system they purchased, the user
should be supported through the fix of that bug. For instance
Microsoft does not charge for updates. That said, I believe it is
entirely fair to charge for new versions and/or enhancements to and
existing product.

I could not renew my maintenance contract for 2008 because of the
cost, lack of response from my CAM and lack of response from some
epicor dept heads I spoke with at the 2007 Perspectives. I wish the
maintenance wasn't priced to gouge the small company that add users
and/or modules. I never heard from my CAM when I didn't renew the
maintenance contract, not even a call to see if I would renew this
year. Makes me feel like a number.....

And we're all about ROI right? I had a hard time finding enough
return to justify the expense.

There are some brillant people working for epicor and they are the
reason the software is so successful. Epicor's business practices are
what holds them from the next level of success.

Rob

-

-- In vantage@yahoogroups.com, "Lindquist, Pam" <plindquist@...> wrote:
>
> Has anyone else noticed that Epicor is tacking on 3% to our annual
> maintenance billing for CPI adj?
> Have you been able to avoid paying this?
>
> Pam
> Metro
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>