Editions and pricing

The product configuration must include the pricing scheme, purchase options, and payment plan. Each grouping of these items is an edition of the product.

There can be several editions of the same product. For example, you can have one edition as a free trial of the product, and paid editions that offer different numbers of licenses for the product software at different prices.

When you create a product definition, it serves as the first edition of the product. You can use it to create other editions that share the marketing profile of the product, but have different payment plans.

For more information on pricing and editions, see editions and pricing section.

Revenue Models and Pricing

The Revenue Model defines the key aspects of your payment plan for each edition. There are four basic revenue models to choose from:

• Free—There is no charge for the product.
  You can use this model for small-scale editions that you offer as a trial, from which customers can upgrade to a paid edition later. You can make it entirely free, or you can specify a trial period. After this trial period, the customer has a grace period in which to upgrade to a paid edition before the subscription is canceled by default.
• One-time—Customers pay a single fee per purchase.
  In this model, customers pay a fee up front to own the product indefinitely. They cannot later downgrade or cancel the product. This option can be used for products such as training or downloads, for example.
• Recurring—Customers pay multiple times, on a regular schedule.
  This is the default model for subscriptions. You specify the amount of the regular payment and how often it is due. You can add one-time setup fees, metered usage charges, volume-based prices, and specify further contract terms for the duration of the subscription, contract and termination fees, and various usage options.
• Tiered—Customers can choose between two or more recurring billing options.
  This model has all the features of a recurring model, with the addition that you can offer different billing frequencies and prices for the same edition. For example you can offer one monthly price for customers who want to pay month by month, and a different yearly price for customers who commit to a full year.

The revenue model you choose in the Revenue Model drop-down determines the fields and defaults that appear in the rest of the Payment Plans section.

Payment Plans

You can specify different pricing options for each edition.

The prices specified here are used when calculating revenue share. They represent the total amount paid to all stakeholders: the vendor, to AppDirect, and to you. Once the product has been published, you can add further discounts or markups that come out of your own share. The amounts due to the vendor and AppDirect remain the same.

The options available for pricing an edition depend on its revenue model. There are several aspects of pricing that you can specify, including:

• Free trials—Grant a free trial period, or create a free edition.
• Usage ranges—Vary pricing based on order size.
• Metered usage—Charge based directly on actual usage.
• Setup fees—Charge an initial general and/or per-seat fee.
• Contract terms—Specify various conditions of purchase.