blackrazor

I also preferred the more "cartoon-like" "campy" colours of RSC. Also, in RSC, the altar room from the black knight's fortress was bigger, and had 2 black knights spawning inside, with another 2 that were close by, and often wandered in. It was a great monk training place, with lots of intense spawn-competition. Great fun, which I miss. I also miss being able to ALWAYS kill-steal with arrows; heck, that's why I started leveling range in the first place .. to hold my spawn in the giant room. === On the other hand, things I love about RS3D that I now couldn't live without: 1) Bank notes (I really really hated certs). 2) Being able to freely reorganize my bank space at will. (I'm a neatness nut.)

The chicken is pretty lethal, and it can arrive anywhere, anytime. Chickens slaughtered a bunch of people trying to make Christmas toys in the Pixie workshop. So I'd say it probably was a chicken. (bwuk, bwuk, bwuk, Muahahahahaha) Sorry, for your loss.

Interesting point, but there is a world of difference between an MMORPG and a message board. Online games are far more immersive (addictive), and players are willing to do far more in their real life, in order to better their virtual avatars. You almost never see that kind of personal sacrifice with users of a message board. Case in point: People will pay $5 a month for a JAVA online game, but how many would pay Tip.it that same $5 a month in order to access the wonderful information resources _and_ message boards here. There are people who are willing to pay for Runescape, but lack the financial tools, or they distrust the internet for secure transactions. Also, some people can't commit to monthly obligations, but they are willing to pay when cash comes their way. Some people may not be able to stomach the idea of "renting time" to play an online game, but are perfectly fine with purchasing real world goods, and receiving online coupons as a side-benefit. All these groups of people would be the natural target for co-branding campaigns.

You may have noticed a button called "Log Off" located at the lower right of your game screen. When you get the urge to browse forums, or chat on msn, or if the doorbell, telephone, or nature calls ... use that button, and all your problems will be solved. The game was designed this way. (In spite of what you think you know about macroing programs.) Learn to live with it. If you find leveling tedious (understandably), then go level another skill, or do some other activity (mini-game, pking, staking, castlewars), or just take a break, go outside, and fill your lungs with fresh air. I promise you that your lungs won't explode from this. (And if they do, it's not like you'll be coming back to complain about it... :lol: )

= Thank goodness the human race has people unlike the poster above me; people who are able to see beyond the status quo. Otherwise we would still be huddled around campfires, still hunting our food with wooden spears and crude stone implements. I can see it now: ========== Thoughtful human: What about a new way to roll things around. I'll call it a ... wheel! runescapeplayer20050 B.C.: theres something called... M U S C L E S ...... *proceeds to bash "Thoughtful human" over the head with a wooden club*

Thanks for your comments Duke Freedom :) Lots of good information there. Just to clarify a couple points. 1) I never meant to say that ASP was "suddenly" unbalanced. There has been a widening imbalance over time, that accelerated with the transition to RS3D. I define this imbalance as a gulf between what a player can do in the world (ex: range, mage), and that player's ability to choose a degree of self-sufficiency (or self-support) towards making their own equipment to accomplish those goals. As such, it was a subjective interpretation on my part, its main purpose to provide a starting point on where upgrades might be considered on ASP, for co-branding ad campaigns. The soft-logic behind such a correlation is that skills would naturally evolve, where there is a need (self-defense, conquest, exploration), met with the raw materials being readily available for trial-and-error learning and refinement of those skills. I personally find it aesthetically pleasing to see these sorts of synergies between man, his abilities, and his environment. I think it makes for solid game design, too. (Although I do understand the idea of deliberately "leaving stuff out" in order to attract players to a premium version of the game, where such balance exists. That has been the trend, and I'm looking for good reasons (co-branding) to allow financial incentive, and aesthetic game design to move together towards a new, positive direction.) 2) I never meant to imply that members would be "alienating" from ASP, certainly I understand and agree that ASP provides a larger community (for merchanting) and a feeder for those interested in trying out the game first, and then subscribing, once they become more excited about it. But, what I meant was that ASPers should be able to provide for their own needs within the context of the version of the game they play, without necessarily relying on NPCs or members for those needs. Green dragonhide armor, bows, arrows, and chaos runes were the specific examples I gave. If ASP can use these items, then ASP should also be able to make these items, as long as it makes financial sense for Jagex to make the adjustments (ex: co-branding). 3) I have put equal emphasis on what co-branding can do for Jagex, and also what it can do for ASPers. I'm not worried about the odd inappropriate comments from ignorant people, more interested in causing conflict, then in making things truly better for everybody. (Yes, Archimage_a, I'm referring to people like you.) Those kinds of people will be forgotten; when they depart of this earth, it will be as if they were never here. I'm proud of the fact that I'm working on an idea that benefits the majority of the human beings who play this game, and also the fine people who have built and run it. Let's all try to remember that we are all humans, here on life's journey, whether we are ad-sponsored, premium members, or developers within the tiny narrow context of this specific game. Maybe if we keep that in mind, then we can maintain a certain minimum level of respect and empathy for one another, as we look for ways to better our common lot, both in the tiny narrow context of this game we share, and in the larger world, as well. I thank Duke Freedom for being such a respectful and empathic contributor. I may not agree with every point, but Duke Freedom has a way of adding to a thread, so that it is better after he posted, than before he arrived.

There already is a furnace. It's called carrying an air staff, water rune, and law rune. When you're done mining, you just tele to Fally center, and there is a furnace right in front of you. And a bank nearby, on the way back to the crafting guild. You know, putting a bank in that guild would unbalance not only crafting, but also smithing (gold is very fast smelting xp), and mining (gold is also great mining xp). With suggestions like these, I'm suprised that people don't just ask for a "gimme xp" button on their RS client. Everytime you press it, it gives you 1 million xp in the skill of your choice. Of course, it would be for members, only. :idea:

Edge, I look at your edit of the original post ... and I think my statement still pretty much applies. EDIT: I looked again at your edit. Ok, I agree, it is a little funnier now. Cute play on words. But you do understand what Tetsuya really meant, yes? Ads are big business, and Jagex should take advantage of the big dollar potential, just as Television Networks do now. But please, everyone (including me, I'm also guilty): Let's try to keep this on topic. Please limit discussion to analyzing co-branding as a viable secondary revenue stream for ASP, and what that could mean for updates to ASP. Please read the previous pages of this topic, and this other topic starting here: http://forum.tip.it/viewtopic.php?t=335006&start=45 So that we don't keep going in circles with what has already been discussed. I'm sure there is lots of room to break new ground on this topic, to suggest improvements and refinements, so lets focus on that. Thanks.

Edge ... you remind me of a dog chasing a car. If that dog should ever catch that car ... that's when it finally discovers that it can't drive. :P So you've caught a bunch of posted figures (the car) ... but what point are you actually trying to make with them (the driving) ? If Jagex has 300K active members, then they make 300K x 5 = 1.5 million per month gross revenue from subs alone. If they have 400K, then they make 2.0 million per month gross revenue from subs. 500K active members = 2.5 million gross revenue from subs .... 1 million active members = 5 million gross revenue from subs .... So besides a boring math lesson, what has the variations in predicted active subscribers, and the gross subscription revenue they represent, have to do with analyzing the co-branding model as a viable secondary revenue stream for the ASP servers? :?: Oh, and: Which is true. How do you think network television stays in business?By calling me think, I guess, seeing as you quoted my reply to say that... :roll: Tetsuya was agreeing with you being called thick, and then he was asking you to think about network television ad models. Not the same thing. But maybe you were making an attempt at humour (I hope so, because the alternatives are too horrifying to consider), in which case I would recommend that you study humour before attempting it again. It's trickier to pull off than it looks.

I want this co-branding concept critiqued and analyzed by the Runescape community. It will be more useful to Jagex, if it has more depth, analysis, and community support. If all you are interested in is an argument, then you're right, you won't get one here. I suggest that you go troll some other thread, or better yet, some other board, for that. RS needs less argument, and more community cooperation.

Hi Duke :) I was wondering when you would post here :) I figured it was a matter of time. Well, I really suggest that you read the last 3 pages (pgs. 4, 5, 6) of the linked thread that I placed at this thread's very beginning. Here it is again: http://forum.tip.it/viewtopic.php?t=335006&start=45 The discussion kind of started here for about half a page, then moved to that thread for about 3 pages. It then moved back here after that topic was closed at the originator's request. The main point of all these pages that I want you to analyze (since I know you have a keen business mind), is the co-branding concept, in its various forms, that evolved over time, through these threads. The point is moot whether Jagex makes enough money. Most companies want to make more, if they can. If my co-branding idea can make Jagex some more real money from ASP, while giving them incentive to update it semi-regularly, then it's a win-win for everyone, I hope. If my idea has flaws, in your opinion, then I'd like to hear them from you. I'm not interested in philosophical debates about whether ASP should get updates. Nor do I want to hear more philosophy on whether Jagex values its ASP population under their current revenue model. Most companies don't decide things based on philosophy; they look at the bottom line. So if co-branding really turns out to be a viable way to generate revenue, then that is probably the only way that ASP will be receiving any meaningful updates (and respect) in the future. Yes, it's ironic that I put so much energy into this, and yet I don't even play much anymore. But like I said before, people are funny. And you know me pretty well Duke, so I'm sure you've guessed by now what I'm getting out of this, what my angle is :D So please have a look at the co-branding, and let me know what you think. :) P.S. For Jagex's sake, I hope they are earning at least $5 per 1000 views on those ads. That is an industry standard, and they are entitled to that much, whether the ads sell, or not. They are shortchanging themselves if they take no money unless the product sells. Imagine if TV networks did that ... they would go bankrupt. I gave a link on banner revenue, too. It's a semi-academic site on the subject (there are many more on metacrawler): http://www.wilsonweb.com/cat/cat.cfm?pa ... _AdPricing If Jagex gets its fair share on ad banners, then they are making money from ASP right now. I remember how pissed off the Gowers were when people were using third party software that ad-blocked, so I assume that they like that revenue, in spite of what selected quotes from their website might allude to. Even so, banner ads make the ASPers customers-by-proxy. The sponsors are the real customers in the ASP equation. In network television, the sponsors aggressively monitor their investment, so there is incentive for the networks to upgrade programming regularly to make viewers happy. I think that RS sponsors, Jagex, and ASPers have all grown complacent with the situation, by comparisson. So even if ASP is cash positive, nothing much will change in terms of updates, unless something dramatic happens. Dramatic might be a large drop in playerbase (could happen for a variety of reasons down the road), or something more positive, like the adoption of co-branding ad campaigns that generate more cash for Jagex, in return for modest (but meaningful) updates to ASP. Me, I like to think positively. cheers, blackrazor

ASP (nothing is free) would never gain updates faster than members. But certainly there is the potential that ASP will gain meaningful updates faster than they do now. Members get new things weekly. By comparisson, these co-branding campaigns will either last many weeks, months, or indefinately. They won't be giving ASP the best stuff either. Always, the best will be saved for members, so the appeal of premium member's services is maintained. If Jagex goes with individual skill coupons, then you can gain a skill or ability (that is on the offered list, obviously not everything from members is available) for yourself, when you redeem a coupon. If Jagex goes with global buckets, then the buckets will be of sufficient size that they will take at least several weeks to fill for the entire community. One bucket does not equal a whole new skill either. These things will come in pieces, so the campaign lasts longer. Takes my whole range update thing. One bucket, once filled, would automatically start the next one filling. The buckets, once filled, would unlock, in this order: 1) Green dragons appear on ASP servers. They drop dragon hides, but no dragon bones. We can now craft leather coifs. 2) Green dragonhide crafting is unlocked on ASP. We can get the hides tanned, and we can craft green vambraces. 3) We can now craft green legs and chests. 4) Fletching is unlocked on the ASP server. We can now make regular, oak, and willow bows. Flax fields appear in Draynor, or Lumby swamps. 5) Arrowsmithing is unlocked on the ASP servers. We can make bronze, iron, and steel arrowheads. We can also now use fletching to make arrow shafts, and bronze, iron, and steel arrows. 6) We can now make mith and addy arrowheads and arrows. 7) We can now make yew bows, and rune arrowheads and arrows. Say each bucket is planned so that it filled in about 7 weeks. That means that it would take 7 x 7, or approximately 49 weeks to fill all seven buckets for these limited range upgrades. That means almost a whole year just for inferior range, while members keeps getting its weekly updates. Then even more weeks for my proposed runecrafting updates, and then we could move on to cooking, with fun but harmless stuff, like potatoes, cream, butter, etc. Maybe also brewing the beers that are already sold in the Falador Inn. All of that could easily be stretched into another 7 steps, 7 buckets, and another year of campaigns. So you can see how this could play out slowly over time, never even coming close to members, yet still giving ASP fun updates, and giving Jagex revenue from commissions sales based on all those filled up buckets that represent purchased goods.

Thank-you for your support Tetsuya. :D I have another co-branding variant that Jagex could also look into. This one focuses on a partnership with appropriate super-store chains, such as Walmart or Toys 'r Us. Chains that sell music CDs (HMV, Music World), video rentals (Blockbuster), or feature movies (Cineplex Odeon, Famous Players) would also work well. Instead of a specific product being featured, the whole store is featured. For every 10 dollars that you spend in the store, a token is printed out as part of your receipt. Not that hard to do, since cash register print heads are usually dot matrix, and quite capable of printing out unique graphic coupons on the receipt, as part of their point-of-sale program. These coupons would be redeemable for skill or ability unlocks in a co-branding campaign for ASP. This just expands the list of potential sponsors that might be interested in participating in such campaigns with Jagex.

lol ! Well the fact is, this kind of stuff really works. Cocacola has their own cokemusic site that works in this way. Many companies co-brand with other companies, offering coupons or free stuff. Airmiles, petropoints specialize in this sort of advertising in the real world. Neopets co-brands in the virtual world, usually with McDonalds, or General Mills (breakfast cereals), if memory serves. I must admit, that I often sit back and wonder if the billions (or more) spent in advertising worldwide are really worth it, but apparently the sponsors think so, and that's good enough for me. Edge, you're right, it might cost the players more in absolute dollars this way. But people are funny. This way, they get tangible products to enjoy in the real world, like candy bars, soda pop, happy meals, toys, etc. And there is none of the credit card, paypal, or currency exchange hassles that exist for subscriptions. Plus many people don't trust the internet for secure financial transactions. And this way, players don't need to maintain a subscription to keep what they have. They pay (buying products) when they are able, and enjoy the game when it's convenient. No worries about subs (or money to pay for subs) running out just as you want to play. Look, it appeals to a different mindset, different circumstances, than the subscriptions. That's a good thing. They can both run together, without competing (or cancelling each other), since they each offer different benefits, and appeal to different sorts of players. As for ad blocking ... players are less likely to block ads, if the ads contain useful information on the skill unlocks. Understand archimage_a? Ideal items that would work for Runescape co-branding are: junk food, fast food, ready made dinners, sugary cereals, movie tickets, toys, music CDs, video rentals. Basically, inexpensive consumable goods that are bought regularly with disposable income by the age demographic that enjoys Runescape. Yes people buy them anyways. But there are many companies selling this sort of stuff. These companies compete very agressively for market share, by advertising, so you are more likely to buy their junk, instead of their competitors'. Anyhow, I've made this as simple as I could. Please, for the love of mike, I hope you understand. If you still don't, then maybe some other kind soul will offer to explain it in different words or something.

THESE SOUND LIKE HYPOTHETICAL THINGS, supposing that I spelt them right :roll: :wink: Oh, ok. I think I understand now. Let me try: Imagine, that you actually posted examples that were relevent to the co-branding campaigns being discussed. Not drops. Not ultra-rares. Not limited time offers, that would all serve only to ruin the whole concept. Better? The company's products get advertised on the banners. Players actually view the banners, in order to know about the co-branding offer. Players have to actually buy the product, in order to get the unique tokens printed inside. So the company gets ads and sales. What more could any sponsor want? This was already explained, too.

If you had bothered to actually read properly the whole thread, and the other thread that this one links to, you would see that it doesn't work that way. There will be no ultra-rare one-time-only things related to this. There will be no drops, holiday or otherwise, related to this. There will be only skill and ability unlocks, for ASP only. (Members already have these same things, and much more that is better, besides.) There will be ongoing campaigns, replaced by other ongoing campaigns. Multiple campaigns across geographic regions. And community oriented "global coupon buckets" for situations where the community needs to earn the upgrade as a whole. Seriously I'm starting to lose patience with people that can't be bothered to read the whole thing, and then post "know it all" retorts at the end, as if those very things hadn't already been discussed and resolved. Please. Read before posting. If written English is difficult for you, then please read again, for as many times as it takes for you to understand. Lets try to keep replies focused on examining new issues not yet resolved in the thread. If you think that an issue wasn't previously resolved, then please state clearly the issue, and why it wasn't resolved. If you have ideas on a better resolution, then please, by all means, add them. Make your post so that others can add, understand, and contribute in a meaningful way. Thank-you.

Members won't need the co-branding offers, unless they plan to play on ASP servers a lot, and wish to build up what they can do there. In that case, members will be able to view the ASP ad campaigns, just like anyone else, while they are on ASP servers. In all cases, whatever updates ASP gets from these campaigns will be lesser members stuff (members already have the same or better), so there is no need for members to worry about missing out. Members stuff will always be better and newer and shinier. This is just a way to Jagex to update ASP, and earn more from ASP in the process, while at the same time preserving the appeal of member's premium priveleges. Understand? This thread never talked about "Jagex hating f2p" ... that is nonsense. If Jagex ever really hated a portion of their playerbase, they could solve that with the flick of a switch. I did provide the best evidence I could about banner revenue here: http://forum.tip.it/viewtopic.php?t=335006&start=65 I can't claim these numbers to be 100% representative for Jagex, but they are far superior to wild guesses and claims. At least I did the research. I'm sure Jagex could give more accurate numbers, if they chose to, naturally. There are many people who are willing and able to buy products (chips, pop, happy meals, toys) to enjoy those products _and_ receive an in-game skill unlock. That is the power of co-branding. Those same people may be unable to purchase subscriptions because of their age, lack of credit cards and other financial tools, general distrust of the internet for entering financial information for online purchases, or huge currency exchange differences between their country's dollar and the U.S. dollar. Some people don't want monthly obligations, and would settle for a lesser, but still updated, service, if they could find some other, less binding way of helping Jagex financially. That would be a whole new market segment, not currently captured by RS premium member's services, and whose revenue potential is currently not being properly exploited by current non-member's services. Companies advertise on the internet in spite of ad blocking, just the same as companies advertise on television, in spite of VCRs and TIVO. Co-branding (my suggestion) may be Jagex's best bet to reduce ad blocking, by giving players a compelling reason NOT to block the very ads that are supplying them with information on how to unlock skills and abilities on the ASP servers.

Adblocking is a serious issue, however I know a lot of free players who unblock ads (for runescape website) to suppport f2p... just think of that mentality applied to what blackrazor has said with advertising opportunities. Thank-you idiot911 for bringing this up. I agree that adblocking is a problem that will cut into Jagex's bottom line from banner ads. The nice thing about co-branding campaigns, it that they get players back into the ads, because the ads themselves become part of the game. The ads will never give items or xp, but they will show how to unlock skill updates that will be of great interest to many ASPers. In order for ASP to unlock their new updates, they have to be aware of the ad campaigns, and of which products are being featured in them. They may also want to follow the progress of various "global coupon buckets" for skills that interest them, and these buckets' progress (represented by a filling graphic) could be embedded in the very banners to which they relate. People will become increasely able to selectively block content as the internet moves forward. For Jagex to protect its ad banner revenue stream, and to expend into new revenue streams, it has to give players compelling reasons not to block their ad content.

Jagex comes here to read, even if they rarely post anymore. The idea will filter down to them eventually from here. I would have posted on their official forums, but alas, that's a member's only priveledge. I'm not paying Jagex a subscription, just so I can have the honour of suggesting new sources of revenue for them. I could have e-mailed them, but I wanted the community here to be a part of this, which wouldn't happen in a private email. Just so you understand my motivation: I'm advocating for ASP out of a sense of history and respect that I have for the original game and its players. I've been an RS player since Nov. 2001. I still get online occasionally, just to look around, try a couple new things, and enjoy the holidays. More out of history and habit, than anything else. I no longer level or train. Heck, I spend more time on tip.it and arenascape, than in RS, these days. I'm trying to help the ASP community to help itself. We'll see where it goes from there.

The way that the RS skill tree is currently implemented, arrowmaking falls under 2 gathering skills (woodcutting and mining), and 2 finishing skills (smithing: for the arrowheads, and fletching: for the arrows as a finished product). So you will need the fletching skill, if you wish to make finished arrows for your own personal use. As a general rule, I had proposed that combat professions on ASP be able to supply their own (lesser than member's) needs, in a manner proportional to what the members currently enjoy, and more in keeping with what we used to enjoy on RSC (back when magic and range were cheap support skills, and we could basically make everything that we needed, in order to be combat proficient).

Hi idiot911, I'm glad you liked the ad ideas. The extra revenue that Jagex would get from ASP players buying products is intended to go hand in hand with those same players actually getting something back in return, in terms of their substantial enjoyment of the game. Instead of doing the "typical more stuff" post, which most people rightfully resent, I tried to come at this from a different tack. I presented a list of ASP proposals, based on the kind of balance that we used to enjoy, relatively speaking, in RSC. I then proposed a new advertising method (co-branding) that could be used in addition to all the revenue methods that Jagex currently employs, in order to generate sufficient new revenue to motivate Jagex to consider this idea. So like I said, it all goes hand in hand. ASP would get updates, some of them even quite handy (but none equal to the high-end rewards of members), but ASP would also contribute more financially in return, in order to unlock those rewards. So the updates to ASP would need to be something worth paying a bit for, even if it's just buying products on which Jagex collects a co-branding commission. (Not to mention all the exposure that Jagex gets, having its Runescape product promoted on bottles of pop, bags of chips, happy meals, etc.)

If the $50 a year that Xbox charges, allows users to bypass an ISP, in order to obtain online content, then it could prove interesting. But I am really uninformed in this as well. So please do you own research before taking the above comments at face value.

Those companies might care if they are running ads on a service (ASP)that actively encourages the viewers to migrate to another service (members), where the ads are not visible. Companies interested in longer term ad sponsor relationships with Jagex (including co-branding), might care more than those interested in one-shot deals. Then again, the more long term relationships might be more profitable to Jagex, so it's something they should consider as the companies they deal with become more "web savvy" in their own right. Naturally the bottom line will always matter most. A company must feel that the ad campaign is beneficial to them, for them to enter into the costs of it. But as time goes by, they may come to wonder how much _more_ profitable their campaign could be, if their viewerbase wasn't encouraged to leave to where they could no longer see the ads. That may well factor into what Jagex can collect in top-dollar ad contracts, when it comes time to renegotiate. You don't see TV stations advertizing other TV stations, even if they own both, do you? As for PMing you personally about all this, why would I do that? I'd just be splitting my energy into just talking with you? Are you really that important ... Well, if the Gowers wanted to talk to me in pms (or emails, aim, whatever) about all my co-branding ideas, that I would be receptive to. But you sir, are no Gower. I think that a public forum (such as that kindly offered by Tip.it), especially the Discussions & Suggestions section, is the perfect place for this to develop and expand. No PMs for you, sorry.

Well, both co-branding ideas have their pluses and minuses. The point is that giving Jagex an arsenal to use, allows them more choice on what is best for them, in any particular circumstance. Individual skill aquisitions tied to a specific co-brand campaign do have problems. What if that particular brand isn't available in a specific geographic region? What if the sponsor is done with the campaign? These can be solved by running different co-brand campaigns in different regions for the same skill acquisition, and be replacing old campaigns with new ones, for a specific skill. Jagex will have every motivation to do this, as each co-brand campaign will earn them extra revenue. As for players that can't be bothered to buy the product in order to get the skill... well the product offered will change over time, so maybe they'll get the next product, in order to open that skill. Or maybe that skill isn't important to them, so they'll just do without it. That's their choice, no need for them to moan about it. I'm all for Jagex getting money; they earn it. If players want to moan, then they'll moan. But Jagex helps themselves if they widen their revenue options. Me personally, I would buy a specific cereal or chocolate bar to unlock a skill on ASP, and eat it happily, too. I'd be more likely to buy into that, than a monthly subscription. I'll bet there are others just like me. And that represents more money that Jagex could be earning by updating our ASP worlds. EDIT: I just wanted to make sure that people understood, that once you personally earned a skill with your token, that it was yours to keep working on, indefinately. By buying the product, and redeeming the coupon, you earn the right to keep lvling and using the skill. Even if the co-brand campaign changes, you retain what you earned. And you can keep participating in new campaigns to earn even more new things, as Jagex chooses to make them available. Also, that most things earned with these co-brand campaigns would still always be inferior to what members has. So the lure of membership will still be there. Even more so, perhaps, as you inch closer and closer to the realization of what members can offer you. Although this last point may seem counter-intuitive, think of it this way: A Rune sword is much more tempting, and you're willing to pay more for it, when you're at Addy, rather than Bronze. In a similar way, as you get closer to members, you can better appreciate, and be more able to take advantage of what it offers. That increases the temptation to go the "whole hog" and get into members, to "complete" your character. But member's abilities that are orders of magnitude away from you, not necessarily because of level, but because of the sheer overwhelming number of "member's only" steps that lie between that goal, and where you are currently on ASP, might ironically make that goal less tangible, and thus less desirable. In simpler terms, it may be ideal for members to be ahead of ASP in many substantial ways, at all times, but never too far ahead that it loses its tangible appeal to ASP. Thus updates which "close the gap" a bit might even be beneficial to getting more members. And using "co-branding" to enable these updates gives an extra revenue stream, and instills ASP customers with the idea that these updates are worth paying for, even if it involves buying a chocolate bar, and redeeming a coupon, instead of paying a subscription. Once you've implanted the idea that updates are worth paying for, it's a shorter step to getting that customer to consider paying for a subscription, too. This is getting into consumer psychology, and I'm sure it's something that Jagex does look at. They seem like a pretty saavy, hard-working group, to me.

Market share. Revenue from subscriptions and advertising. Jagex doesn't care how you connect; it's good for them if you can. Anywhere you find Java, you will find Runescape, for that reason. It was designed that way, from the ground up.