Hi.

I'm really confused by this whole decision. I simply can't find the reasoning behind it. If it is true that the software development for the empeg/riocar is continueing (how long?), the only cost that is involved with selling the empeg is the cost of actually producing the units and the cost of the shop. Now if SonicBlue is not selling the empeg at a price below their own costs, further production of the unit and further selling of it would not lead to a loss but to a gain in revenue, not?
If I understand the whole process of producing and selling the empeg correctly, then there are the following five things involved:

1. Hardware development: Done, nothing to do anymore if not for a successor.


2. Software development: Not finished yet, but this will not be stopped anyway, as the statement stands


3. Production of the units: This is stopped


4. Selling of the units: This will be stopped as soon as they are out of stock


5. Costumer service: This is said to continue

Ok, what did I miss?

Anyhow: I'm really disappointed by this decission. The tuners just got available and the unavailability of those was a major drawback on empeg sales as far as my friends are concerned. Contracts with large distributors were just signed some months ago, obviously no large scale marketing efforts were made to introduce the empeg/riocar to the market. What did SonicBlue expect? Did they already plan to stop riocar production when purchasing empeg Ltd?
What bugs me most is that I just made some free time available to actually start the development of an empeg based navigation system, and thought that such a system would really make the empeg/riocar a killer device for everyones car. But now I really don't see any reason to develop such a system anymore, there just won't ever be a market for it, if riocar sales are stopped. Not that I wanted to make money by selling the system (it was going to be strictly open-source as far as possible), but if there are only 3000 or so riocars out there, how many of those owners would want a navigation system on it, or how many of those owners would help developing it?

frustrated,
sven

proud MkII owner (12GB blue/green/smoked, was #080000113 is #090001010)