Jelsoft's future

[Wayne Luke]

Yeah, but James might be referring to vBulletin.com, not vBulletin.org

vBulletin.org is a Jelsoft Asset. The name is owned by Jelsoft and it is managed by overall by Jelsoft. It has been that way from the beginning. It has never really been an independent site. The day to day work on the site is done by volunteers but it is still a Jelsoft asset.

[MRGTB]

Most of those comments have already been voiced in this thread...

I've been pretty adamant about the subject myself, and obviously I'm not in a position to speak for anyone, but I highly doubt the development of the blogs was in any way related to the acquisition. **** mentioned as much and whatever else happens, I trust the honesty and integrity of the jelsoft staff.

I also doubt that code will be added for IB to collect stats our the traffic of our forums but again I am concerned about how the information Jelsoft already has about us will be used by IB going forward.

I'm just quoting what's been posted there out of interest and nothing more. Or do we all want to turn a blind eye at whats being said over at IPB.

I don't, I want to read what they have to say about all this this.

[Dream]

I don't want to start all over again. Go to IPS, whine at their style until they fix it, etc etc. One two years gone until my forums look good again. *sigh*

[Wayne Luke]

I'm just quoting what's been posted there out of interest and nothing more. Or do we all want to turn a blind eye at whats being said over at IPB.

I don't, I want to read what they have to say about all this this.

The people over at IPB really don't have any knowledge whatsoever about the transaction. They are speculating and fear mongering. Its good for their business in a way.

I don't want to start all over again. Go to IPS, whine at their style until they fix it, etc etc. One two years gone until my forums look good again. *sigh*

You're not going to have to. Just stay here with the best software. We have the same development team so it will continue to be that way.

[MRGTB]

Yeah, but it's fun to read what they have to say though. And some of the staff there in that thread are not exactly holding back are they

[Wayne Luke]

Haven't looked at the thread myself because I don't care what they say really. It doesn't affect my day to day work here where I am trying to support customers all day.

[MRGTB]

Luke I know that, I'm not trying to have a dig at anybody. And I respect the work you all do here. But this is big news, what do you expect.

[---MAD---]

I had my concerns at first, but I am not worried.

There are many examples of acquisitions among big businesses that have gone very well. One recent example that most internet users can identify with is the acquisition of YouTube by Google. YouTube has only improved in the last 9 months since the acquisition... their basic service has remained the same with the addition of several new features and more exposure as a result of the acquisition (e.g. YouTube is now searchable on video.google.com). YouTube is becoming huge on the internet and in the media, and there is no doubt that Google has helped in that regard.

I don't buy into the arguments that an acquisition must necessarily screw the customers. Jelsoft is an investment. It is in the best interest of IB to grow that investment. IB is a major vBulletin customer just like all of you. They share the same passions and concerns over the future of vBulletin. They genuinely want to see vBulletin be successful, and this acquisition will help them to take a more active role in the success of vBulletin in order to protect their investment.

I have faith that this acquisition will be good for Jelsoft. I have worked with James a long time. He takes care of his employees and customers and has our welfare in mind. He genuinely believes that this acquisition is a good thing for the company and for the customers, and I trust that. He has addressed all of our concerns and has done his best to ensure that this acquisition is beneficial for all parties involved.

Nothing is changing. James is still the CEO. Kier is still the lead developer. All current employees are staying except for John who left the company to pursue other interests, but John hasn't been involved for quite some time. The only difference is that we now have a parent company that is committing money and resources to help us in our goals.



Money isn't the only resource that IB brings to the table.

I like the way you have phrased it all and I think people should give IB a chance now since the current staff have promised nothing will change staff wise etc. Lets just try and notice what IB do to improve development etc. After all, we all know vBulletin is/was far too slow when developing products (and there was a thread on this with many posts so maybe IB will be able to change all that with their resources and if so, we will probably start to notice it in the next few weeks if not then next few months .

[Reeve of Shinra]

I'm also hoping that this will speed up the development of new products. I would love a vb-powered CMS solution.

[Dream]

I don't see a CMS appearing out of nowhere, I'd give it at least 6 months under development.

[TitanKing]

I am worried, I have seen it before. Noobs buy you out and expect great returns, they push the developers with their greed thinking more functions = more money, and in return a product gets rushed (like M$) and as a result a crap product gets produced.

I hope, oh I hope this is not the case...

[Colin F]

IB are far from 'Noobs'
They have 500 employees, including their own software development department that creates products and utilities for use across their portfolio of sites. There is also a full contingent of sales, marketing and customer service staff, as well as an executive team with significant business experience, including alumni from Yahoo!, Universal Studios and the LA Times:
http://www.internetbrands.com/ib/management

[RedTyger]

I agree with some of the things Jason said, but what else are they going to say, really? It's good for IPB, quelle surprise. A write-up about a company's changes by their competitor is about the last thing you should credibly listen to. You may as well ask the Pope what he thinks about Ron Hubbard. That's not a reflection on them, it's just the way of things. I wouldn't expect different from anyone else.

[MRGTB]

That Jason H from IPB is just getting carried away with what he's saying. To be honest I think he loves the sound of his own voice and talks a bit of cra**

And you know, they're all laughing about it over there, quoting things like Jelsoft are gone now to rub it in. But I bet on the quite there quite worried about this you know. Because it's suited IPB until now, but if things happen that might happen now IB have taken over. It will not be long before vBulletin have the extra products to tempt users away from IPB. Which was not the case before.

So if you ask me, they have more to worry about, than laugh about.

[Vile]

That Jason H from IPB is just getting carried away with what he's saying. To be honest I think he loves the sound of his own voice and talks a bit of cra**

And you know, they're all laughing about it over there, quoting things like Jelsoft are gone now to rub it in. But I bet on the quite there quite worried about this you know. Because it's suited IPB until now, but if things happen that might happen now IB have taken over. It will not be long before vBulletin have the extra products to tempt users away from IPB. Which was not the case before.

So if you ask me, they have more to worry about, than laugh about.

As mentioned above, like us, they know very little about the specific details in regards to this this acquisition and thus, their behavior is typical of how the underdog acts. They know their product is inferior and they know they can't compete in any other way aside from bashing and bad mouthing the superior product.

/end rant.