Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

william-james88 wrote:

YoungPrime wrote:I can't stand Funpubs price gouging anyway. So if they are closing up shop it wont hurt my feelings, plus it all makes sense with news of Hasbro trademarking “Cybertron Con” a little over a month ago.

So keep it "in house", make the rates cheaper, more accessible for all collectors and it keeps out 3rd party.

Bout d@mn time Hasbro, just don't disappoint and alienate TF collectors and fans like Botcon did.

Come on man, dont give in to the false assumptions. Cybertron Con is for a Hong Kong convention that has been going on for years. Its no relatated. Just google Hong Kong Cybertron Con and you will see its been going on for a while (the prime shockwave lab exclusive was sold there). That was just license renewal to ensure protect that convention in Hong Kong and ensure they can keep using that name, sicne its a very popular convention there.

I'm not giving into anything. I'm simply hoping for a plausible solution to an ongoing issue with certain crappy convention. No one knows what the full extent of Hasbro's plans are for that trademark so until I hear differently, it's still a possibility and it makes sense if only to save Hasbro the embarrassment of getting owned by 3rd Party companies at their own event.

Plus if it was just misplaced speculation then Funpub should've nipped this in the bud hours ago....

People are complaining about $40 dollars when you get a Limited Edition Exclusive figure and 6 issues of a semi decent fan club newsletter. Counting postage for everything you are getting a pretty darn good value. Expecting more from a small time outfit like Pete and friends is a little much. Not a FUNPUB fanboy or anything just looking at it from a business point of view. TFCC was a good thing for the most part. I don't like overpaying for their convention / store exclusives though. Those could be a little more reasonable.

Primeultimus wrote:People are complaining about $40 dollars when you get a Limited Edition Exclusive figure and 6 issues of a semi decent fan club newsletter. Counting postage for everything you are getting a pretty darn good value. Expecting more from a small time outfit like Pete and friends is a little much. Not a FUNPUB fanboy or anything just looking at it from a business point of view. TFCC was a good thing for the most part. I don't like overpaying for their convention / store exclusives though. Those could be a little more reasonable.

No we're not. It's being forced to pay $300-$400 for 6 figures of which maybe 2 are even desired during botcom. Quit trying to dismiss the real issues here.

You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

I not sure this means Fupub is out. It could just be a change in the way they d membership in 2017. They could be eliminating the printed news letter since it is kinda pointless these days. Possibly changing club membership to align when FSS signup is.

YoungPrime wrote:

Primeultimus wrote:People are complaining about $40 dollars when you get a Limited Edition Exclusive figure and 6 issues of a semi decent fan club newsletter. Counting postage for everything you are getting a pretty darn good value. Expecting more from a small time outfit like Pete and friends is a little much. Not a FUNPUB fanboy or anything just looking at it from a business point of view. TFCC was a good thing for the most part. I don't like overpaying for their convention / store exclusives though. Those could be a little more reasonable.

No we're not. It's being forced to pay $300-$400 for 6 figures of which maybe 2 are even desired during botcom. Quit trying to dismiss the real issues here.

But it's your fault you can cancel your membership instead of paying you're robbing yourself.

ciberw0lf wrote:I not sure this means Fupub is out. It could just be a change in the way they d membership in 2017. They could be eliminating the printed news letter since it is kinda pointless these days. Possibly changing club membership to align when FSS signup is.

As I said before, although it's all circumstantial evidence at this stage, this "change in the way they" operate explanation simply isn't plausible. All signs point to 2016 being FunPub's last year with the club/convention.

G.B. Blackrock wrote:

ciberw0lf wrote:I not sure this means Fupub is out. It could just be a change in the way they d membership in 2017. They could be eliminating the printed news letter since it is kinda pointless these days. Possibly changing club membership to align when FSS signup is.

As I said before, although it's all circumstantial evidence at this stage, this "change in the way they" operate explanation simply isn't plausible. All signs point to 2016 being FunPub's last year with the club/convention.

True, but the belief that whatever follows wiil be instantly better is crazy

YoungPrime wrote: No one knows what the full extent of Hasbro's plans are for that trademark so until I hear differently, it's still a possibility and it makes sense if only to save Hasbro the embarrassment of getting owned by 3rd Party companies at their own event.

Plus if it was just misplaced speculation then Funpub should've nipped this in the bud hours ago....

But we do. It was brought up in the recent google hangout with hasbro:

The "Cybertron Con" trademark was positioned as a successful convention in Asia and they wanted to protect the trademark as much as possible. Botcon 2016 is happening as planned.

I am not saying speculation for the end of TFCC is unfounded, I am pretty sure its happening, but its confirmed NOT to be related to cybertron con. That is all I meant and I would very much like it if we move on from the cybettron con stuff since it will invalidate any hypothesis presented.

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Yeah and you assume too much. (I've never bought jack from Botcom)

And if this news turns out to be true and that Hasbro could be taking things over moving forward then I couldn't be happier.

You on the other hand sound a little bitter but I understand

Seems like a lot of folks expect their limited-run, heavily-painted toys with exclusively-retooled mold plates to cost the same as retail figures.

If you're going to have expectation/reality dissonances like that, I'd advise not getting married.

william-james88 wrote:

YoungPrime wrote: No one knows what the full extent of Hasbro's plans are for that trademark so until I hear differently, it's still a possibility and it makes sense if only to save Hasbro the embarrassment of getting owned by 3rd Party companies at their own event.

Plus if it was just misplaced speculation then Funpub should've nipped this in the bud hours ago....

But we do. It was brought up in the recent google hangout with hasbro:

The "Cybertron Con" trademark was positioned as a successful convention in Asia and they wanted to protect the trademark as much as possible. Botcon 2016 is happening as planned.

I am not saying speculation for the end of TFCC is unfounded, I am pretty sure its happening, but its confirmed NOT to be related to cybertron con. That is all I meant and I would very much like it if we move on from the cybettron con stuff since it will invalidate any hypothesis presented.

Tell ya what, if Funpub is still ripping people off at conventions in 2017 I'll buy you Coke. If Hasbro takes things into their own hands then we all win.

Sound fair?

Randomus wrote:Seems like a lot of folks expect their limited-run, heavily-painted toys with exclusively-retooled mold plates to cost the same as retail figures.

If you're going to have expectation/reality dissonances like that, I'd advise not getting married.

Hope you didn't gather all that from me simply saying "figures could be cheaper" because the irony here could be devastating.

YoungPrime wrote:Tell ya what, if Funpub is still ripping people off at conventions in 2017 I'll buy you Coke. If Hasbro takes things into their own hands then we all win.

Sound fair?

Look man, I dont care about fupub. Being outside the states, their stuff was out of reach so thats one part of the tf fandom I am simply not part of. Their lack of comment solidifies the belief that they wont be around as part of the transfomrers club, so I dont think they will be there is 2017. But as someone who deals with the news and actually wrote about these trademarks, I just wanted to point out that some of the evidence people are using is false. And I would like to make sure we are being smart and speaking rationally. Some people were confused over the cbertron con stuff and I simply wanted for people to know what was up. Doesnt take anything away from people's opinions or the fact that funpub probably wont be handling tf stuff past 2016.

As for me, I never liked their method. I always found the idea of a fan club handled outside hasbro very limited regionally, hence my lack in participation. I also found their exclusives very much overpriced. As a business analyst I just see so much inefficiencies in that business model. If that is the price they needed to stay afloat then theres a problem somewhere. I dont care much for thrd party products either but when a combiner made up of hasbro repaints costs as much as a 3p combiner, something is wrong somewhere.

I'm inclined to think the show's ending as well, but it hasn't been confirmed, and there are plenty of other possibilities. Celebrating is premature, and slightly inappropriate. Especially from those who don't even participate in Club events or purchase their products.

Even IF it's true that a FunPub administrated Club is ending, what makes people think prices would be cheaper for exclusives? Look at eHobby's or similar figures - prices are just as if not more expensive on average, even in those figures' native markets. To expect some cataclysmic change is unrealistic. I would expect similar product and similar prices no matter who's running the show. At this point it's a matter of good will and fan reception, which Hasbro has also been known to bungle.

I agree with everything megatronus just said.

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Well, I mean, I could buy tfss impactor for $85+ (buying him through funpub at botcon still includes a $40 surcharge) or I could buy mmc spartan for $85; as much as I like combiners, spartan is an infinitely better deal

megatronus wrote:I didn't read this as the Club ending post-2016. Not necessarily. I could see them moving to a defined subscription period, kind of like how the Subscription Service is setup: "Want to be a Club member? Well you have to join within this window. Otherwise, no dice." Or, maybe it's something else.

Yeah, that's kind of how I read it; looks like they're just changing when the yearly cut-off is.

I'm actually alright with the current modus operandi... I'm really only in it for the freebie and the magazine, an occasional exclusive on a blue moon. I've pretty much accepted the fact I'll never be able to go to BotCon, so their exclusives don't mean that much to me (but goddamn, do I wish for some of 2014's exclusives...).

Hellscream9999 wrote:

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Well, I mean, I could buy tfss impactor for $85+ (buying him through funpub at botcon still includes a $40 surcharge) or I could buy mmc spartan for $85; as much as I like combiners, spartan is an infinitely better deal

Please. Club Impactor will be available for $40 on the secondary market. Mark my words.

megatronus wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Well, I mean, I could buy tfss impactor for $85+ (buying him through funpub at botcon still includes a $40 surcharge) or I could buy mmc spartan for $85; as much as I like combiners, spartan is an infinitely better deal

Please. Club Impactor will be available for $40 on the secondary market. Mark my words.

Oh, yeah, forgot he was happening. I want him, too!

Not to sound like a pessimist, but $40 seems too gracious... I'll say somewhere around $50, $60 tops.

Mindmaster wrote:

megatronus wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Well, I mean, I could buy tfss impactor for $85+ (buying him through funpub at botcon still includes a $40 surcharge) or I could buy mmc spartan for $85; as much as I like combiners, spartan is an infinitely better deal

Please. Club Impactor will be available for $40 on the secondary market. Mark my words.

Oh, yeah, forgot he was happening. I want him, too!

Not to sound like a pessimist, but $40 seems too gracious... I'll say somewhere around $50, $60 tops.

$50-$60 at first, maybe. But of all the Subscription 4.0 figures, I can see Impactor going on clearance fastest. That mystery 7th figure might shake things up slightly.

megatronus wrote:

Mindmaster wrote:

megatronus wrote:

Hellscream9999 wrote:

mirageandjazz1197 wrote:You guys whine too much.

You knew what you were going into when you bought a membership from a small company.

Well, I mean, I could buy tfss impactor for $85+ (buying him through funpub at botcon still includes a $40 surcharge) or I could buy mmc spartan for $85; as much as I like combiners, spartan is an infinitely better deal

Please. Club Impactor will be available for $40 on the secondary market. Mark my words.

Oh, yeah, forgot he was happening. I want him, too!

Not to sound like a pessimist, but $40 seems too gracious... I'll say somewhere around $50, $60 tops.

$50-$60 at first, maybe. But of all the Subscription 4.0 figures, I can see Impactor going on clearance fastest. That mystery 7th figure might shake things up slightly.

Calling it right now, it's going to be Guzzle from Brawl. I even made a midget mode from fiddling with my Brawl that'd be perfect for Guzzle! Granted, it costs him all posability in the knees...

YoungPrime wrote:

Randomus wrote:Seems like a lot of folks expect their limited-run, heavily-painted toys with exclusively-retooled mold plates to cost the same as retail figures.

If you're going to have expectation/reality dissonances like that, I'd advise not getting married.

Hope you didn't gather all that from me simply saying "figures could be cheaper" because the irony here could be devastating.

The point of the joke is that plenty of fans (I wasn't singling you out) seem to create unrealistic expectations, then get enraged when reality doesn't meet them.

I get it; the toys are expensive, but as Megatronus wrote, that's the nature of the exclusive market. If another company (Hasbro or TT included) took the reins, it probably wouldn't change a that.

Yeah, their system got hacked, but whose hasn't? When Target got hacked, no one demanded that Walmart or Sears buy them out.

Don't take me for their lobbyist. I only have 2 of their figures...from eBay. Price is a legitimate downside after all, and I'm rarely interested in obscure characters. When we start cheering for a company's downfall, however, we're not talking issues anymore; we're creating a villain for ourselves to scream at.

If MTMTE can make things more complex than Good vs Evil, why can't real life?

Fun Pub is done. You can deny it if you want, but they are done.

At no point have they actually dispelled the rumors. In previous years, if you said on the Botcon Facebook page that Botcon would never be outside of California again, Pete would immediately reply that that wasn't true. This year people are saying this will be the last Botcon and there is complete silence from Fun Pub.

Heck, I bet if you ask Jesse right now if this year is the last Botcon, he'll only be able to provide the corporate response of "I can't comment". Any other year, he'd be able to say, "No, it's not."

Which is fine. People just need to accept that we won't get any official confirmation until Botcon or later and that this is the last Official Botcon and that there won't be a Fun Pub licensed Transformers Collectors Club or GI Joe Club after the end of next year.

What happens after that? Who knows. Fun Pub owns the Botcon name. So even if they don't have the official Transformers license any more, they could continue to do Botcon as an unofficial convention like TFCon. However, I think that would just be waste of everyone's time and money. Without the license or official toys, they won't be able to compete with TFCon.

As for CybertronCon. Yes, we know that's the name of the event in Asia. However, Hasbro trademarked it here in America. So there likely will be a CybertronCon USA and I would not be surprised if it turned into a all things Hasbro convention rather than just Transformers. Especially with them trying to build a cinematic universe that puts all their brands together.

Bed Bugs wrote:Especially with them trying to build a cinematic universe that puts all their brands together.

I can see it now: 'From Micheal Bay... When evil threatens, Gem and the Holograms must team up with the cast of G.I. Joe to combat Decepticons riding horseback on My Little Pony characters in: Hasbro's cinematic mistake'