Thu Jun 29, 2006 9:41 pm
Green Lady of the knoll wrote:I did have a nice cell phone that would have worked back home and would have tried a month of the service just for kicks, because in my mind the price is equal to a trip to McDonalds...but not available here. I am not surprised that the canadian phone worked, my us phone used to work in parts of Juarez Mexico, but what with Tri-band and Quad-bands in Europe & Asia I can't imagine it working the same.
I don't know much about the American cell phones, or what frequencies they come with, but if you get a Canadian cell phone, with all 4 frequencies (850, 9 something, 11 something and 16 something i think), then you would have no problem using the phone in other countries. If someone knows anything about the frequencies that the American cell phone companies has, mind sharing?
But, back on topic...
I still see no problem with Neopets making this a cell phone only thing.
And everyone keeps saying that their targeted audience is small kids...does anyone remember in the beginning when Neopets was made for college students? Maye they are trying to get the College students more interested in it, by making a land they can access by cell phone, say, when they are board in a class (I know I would be using it), on a long trip somewhere...who knows where else, just anywhere where a college student travels without a computer!
I know if I had it, I would take it to work all the time and play it, because I wouldnt go out and buy a laptop just to play Neopets, at least with a cell phone, i can still keep in contact while on an erran or out and about PLUS still play Neopets...
Ok, I'm done...
Thu Jun 29, 2006 10:09 pm
background_noise wrote (from the thread Shores of Lutari Island)
^ thats what I was referencing when I made the target audience comment. It also makes it sound like it is a North American thing, but we will have to wait and see when someone on this side of the ocean tries. (shrug)
chi_chi1548286 wrote
It WOULD have made all those night shifts at 7-11 go SO much faster!!!
Maybe this article from the Boston Globe might explain things:
Quote:
A WIRELESS FEEDING FOR A VIRTUAL PET
Author(s): KIM-MAI CUTLER Date: June 28, 2006 Page: C1 Section: Business
Vacation no longer means starvation for the millions of virtual pets around the country.
MTV Networks unveiled a mobile version of its children's Neopets website yesterday that lets owners feed and play with their pets on the go. The unit of Viacom International Inc. bought the site last year for $160 million along with other online properties to keep up with its youthful audience's shift away from the TV screen. Last year, about 39 percent of the site's 30 million users worldwide were 12 or younger. Aimed at 12- to 17-year-olds, the mobile service works seamlessly from computers to cellphones, meaning a meal fed to a pet on the phone will also show up on the website. Cingular Wireless LLC will charge $2.99 a month during the three-month trial in North America.
^ thats what I was referencing when I made the target audience comment. It also makes it sound like it is a North American thing, but we will have to wait and see when someone on this side of the ocean tries. (shrug)
chi_chi1548286 wrote
I know if I had it, I would take it to work all the time and play it, because I wouldnt go out and buy a laptop just to play Neopets, at least with a cell phone, i can still keep in contact while on an erran or out and about PLUS still play Neopets...
It WOULD have made all those night shifts at 7-11 go SO much faster!!!
Sat Jul 01, 2006 5:49 am
Yellow Urapa Bead
(special)
Just noticed this in my inventory, so it must have come from a Random Event today. Should I sell it, or put it on my talisman? I'm thinking sell it, then buy one later when they've further deflated.
Sat Jul 01, 2006 4:42 pm
GIR wrote:Yellow Urapa Bead
(special)
Just noticed this in my inventory, so it must have come from a Random Event today. Should I sell it, or put it on my talisman? I'm thinking sell it, then buy one later when they've further deflated.
Once you've put them on, can you remove them?
If it were me, I would put them on my Talisman. I am a Lutari junkie and will totally get into all this stuff (minus the cell service) if I can
Sat Jul 01, 2006 6:01 pm
I think the beads will eventually wind up around the same price as treasure maps, because they're pretty similar (minus the prize). I'll eventually go back and buy them all once they're cheaper.
Sun Jul 02, 2006 3:15 am
Um, more than 4 neopets? I was on the neoboards and saw someone who has 6 Neopets.. 3 of them being Lutaris. So does this cellphone offer give you the ability to have MORE than 4 Neopets? Or is this just a bug in the system TNT didnt think about.. and obviously this means Lutaris are creatable on Lutari Island because these Lutaris are only 0-2 hours old. The user is http://www.neopets.com/randomfriend.pht ... atindahood but if its not any good to post their username, than a mod can gladly edit this post and this entier last sentence out. 
Sun Jul 02, 2006 7:42 am
It's a not so surprising but still sad fact that with Viacom buying the site, this kind of thing is going to only become more and more common. I thought premium was already bad enough but tolerated it.
Now they are trying to get minors involved through the mobile service ("Aimed at 12- to 17-year-olds, the mobile service [...]") to get even more revenue and anyone who has ever used their mobile for internet access knows how expensive that by itself can be, let alone the added charge of $3.00 just to play on some contrived marketing ploy.
It bothers me more it is a blatant marketing ploy than the fact it exists at all. Claiming that this is somehow fair or acceptable is just ludicrous. Neopets has slowly and steadily become less and less entertainment oriented and more concerned with marketing and product placement towards kids.
Since they started making tiered branches of players (premium, mobile and "the rest") with clear enticements to pay money to the site (all while clearly stating you have no rights to anything you do/create there and can be frozen on a whim for any percieved infraction), then I have to wonder how much longer until it becomes a full pay site with "free" users getting only a trial period before having to sign up with a credit card to pay a monthly fee.
It always starts with small, subtle steps but eventually it becomes a pay site with few things to do if you don't pay out the money. This is what I see as the real problem with the existence of Lutari Island.
This latest move has me yet again reconsidering quitting the site and just moving on. There are only so many of these poorly concieved marketing attempts I can tolerate before I do give up and quit for good.
Now they are trying to get minors involved through the mobile service ("Aimed at 12- to 17-year-olds, the mobile service [...]") to get even more revenue and anyone who has ever used their mobile for internet access knows how expensive that by itself can be, let alone the added charge of $3.00 just to play on some contrived marketing ploy.
It bothers me more it is a blatant marketing ploy than the fact it exists at all. Claiming that this is somehow fair or acceptable is just ludicrous. Neopets has slowly and steadily become less and less entertainment oriented and more concerned with marketing and product placement towards kids.
Since they started making tiered branches of players (premium, mobile and "the rest") with clear enticements to pay money to the site (all while clearly stating you have no rights to anything you do/create there and can be frozen on a whim for any percieved infraction), then I have to wonder how much longer until it becomes a full pay site with "free" users getting only a trial period before having to sign up with a credit card to pay a monthly fee.
It always starts with small, subtle steps but eventually it becomes a pay site with few things to do if you don't pay out the money. This is what I see as the real problem with the existence of Lutari Island.
This latest move has me yet again reconsidering quitting the site and just moving on. There are only so many of these poorly concieved marketing attempts I can tolerate before I do give up and quit for good.
Sun Jul 02, 2006 11:04 am
I wasn't going to post but after reading the whole way through the thread I thought I'd weigh in my two cents/pence
I've been playing neopets on and off for about 4 1/2 years. I can't remember the totems to get into the ice caves or mystery island and yes, I subscribe to premium because at about £4 a month I can afford it. (Personally I don't feel that paying for premium is unfair as everyone does have the option to access it as it is internet based and thus worldwide. Like all things in life circumstances/timing/funds may make you unable to partake in the service but you are still given the opportunity to access it... but that's life I'm afraid and although you may try to give everyone a fair chance some things just don't turn out that way, plus it is still in beta test phase so eventually there will be unlimited spaces to sign up.)
That aside the point I am trying to make is that the cell phone service (as is premium sort of) is currently in a trial period this means that it is still full of bugs (as evidenced by the user with 5 pets, three of which are lutaris) and definately not in its final version. We simply do not know what will happen with the service, which new carriers will be added, which countries will have it available, if the no access from phone and computer simultaneously will continue, how the charging system will work... the list goes on. So really complaining about a service which is still in its infancy seems a little silly when we don't know how it will actually function.
As far as paying for a service goes I'm not bothered about it, parents have the responsiblity of policing their childrens' cell phone usage and if they want to let their kids run up bills or subscribe for a (what is to me or an earning adult) fairly inexpensive service that is their choice. And if they want to say no to the demands then its up to them to teach their children that they can't always have everything. As someone who pays her own bills and doesn't have any children it's not really my area of interest
I won't reiterate the points made about "paying to play" and the site still being "completely free" but I do agree that you are not required to pay to access the site and you can still have an enjoyable experience so they are well within their rights to say the site is free.
I personally have no moral or financial objections to paying and getting extra perks, in the end that's just how the world works. It's not a charity, the site exists to generate income, they have a huge number of staff to pay and shareholders to please (I assume) turning a profit is important and they need to keep up with what makes one. Their "target audience" is moving away from the internet and into a more mobile environment and they need to keep pace with that or be left behind.
Wow, for someone who wasn't going to post that's very long. Sorry if it's a little disjointed, I kept getting distracted by food and cats.
EDIT: added some stuff, wow this really is a rant!
I've been playing neopets on and off for about 4 1/2 years. I can't remember the totems to get into the ice caves or mystery island and yes, I subscribe to premium because at about £4 a month I can afford it. (Personally I don't feel that paying for premium is unfair as everyone does have the option to access it as it is internet based and thus worldwide. Like all things in life circumstances/timing/funds may make you unable to partake in the service but you are still given the opportunity to access it... but that's life I'm afraid and although you may try to give everyone a fair chance some things just don't turn out that way, plus it is still in beta test phase so eventually there will be unlimited spaces to sign up.)
That aside the point I am trying to make is that the cell phone service (as is premium sort of) is currently in a trial period this means that it is still full of bugs (as evidenced by the user with 5 pets, three of which are lutaris) and definately not in its final version. We simply do not know what will happen with the service, which new carriers will be added, which countries will have it available, if the no access from phone and computer simultaneously will continue, how the charging system will work... the list goes on. So really complaining about a service which is still in its infancy seems a little silly when we don't know how it will actually function.
As far as paying for a service goes I'm not bothered about it, parents have the responsiblity of policing their childrens' cell phone usage and if they want to let their kids run up bills or subscribe for a (what is to me or an earning adult) fairly inexpensive service that is their choice. And if they want to say no to the demands then its up to them to teach their children that they can't always have everything. As someone who pays her own bills and doesn't have any children it's not really my area of interest
I won't reiterate the points made about "paying to play" and the site still being "completely free" but I do agree that you are not required to pay to access the site and you can still have an enjoyable experience so they are well within their rights to say the site is free.
I personally have no moral or financial objections to paying and getting extra perks, in the end that's just how the world works. It's not a charity, the site exists to generate income, they have a huge number of staff to pay and shareholders to please (I assume) turning a profit is important and they need to keep up with what makes one. Their "target audience" is moving away from the internet and into a more mobile environment and they need to keep pace with that or be left behind.
Wow, for someone who wasn't going to post that's very long. Sorry if it's a little disjointed, I kept getting distracted by food and cats.
EDIT: added some stuff, wow this really is a rant!
Sun Jul 02, 2006 12:46 pm
Dustin wrote:Um, more than 4 neopets? I was on the neoboards and saw someone who has 6 Neopets.. 3 of them being Lutaris. So does this cellphone offer give you the ability to have MORE than 4 Neopets? Or is this just a bug in the system TNT didnt think about.. and obviously this means Lutaris are creatable on Lutari Island because these Lutaris are only 0-2 hours old.
Well, he's down to five now, but: O_O
Still not enough of an incentive to make me pay for this service, but it's tempting, because you could always morph the Lutaris into another species if desired....
Sun Jul 02, 2006 4:11 pm
I'm sorry, could someone please clarify a few things for me?
Do the beads have an 'Add to talisman' option?
Can you SEE the beads once they have been added?
What happens if you get all the beads?
Do the beads have an 'Add to talisman' option?
Can you SEE the beads once they have been added?
What happens if you get all the beads?
Tue Jul 04, 2006 1:01 am
twinklyspangle wrote:I'm sorry, could someone please clarify a few things for me?
Do the beads have an 'Add to talisman' option?
Can you SEE the beads once they have been added?
What happens if you get all the beads?
Yes, yes, and I don't know. One person's petpage showed a screenshot of her nearly-complete talisman, and a following line of text was copied from where you haggle with a shopkeeper, and included a line saying the person received a discount due to the talisman.
Tue Jul 04, 2006 8:39 pm
Ok let me clear a few things up about Lutari Island
Games:
Blockstravaganza!: Its like Bejewelled but easier (you can switch 2 blocks that dont end up in a row) and you don't really get much np from it(I ussually end up getting 200 by the time i lose) and you can send 10 times a day.
Go Go Lutari: Turmac Roll
Survival Academy: Train here using feathers. It is NOT cheaper than ANY training school. Feathers cost 80k-90k and for my level 50 pet it takes 3.
Wheel of happiness: All I have ever won from this is 250 np 500np and a full heal. can be spun every 30 minutes and costs 100 np
Lutari Savings Bank: Just a branch of the national neopian bank
Island Market: I used to be able to make huge profit here but now everything has started rapidly crashing in price. items that were unbuyable are now 10k. you can buy 3 items before they tell you they are sold out then you have to wait for about an hour.
Fluorescent Pools: Healing Springs
Brianas Quests: Says she gives you random event quests but I havent gotten one all of my random events have been my pets wanting specific lutari themed food.
Island Gossip: news
Bog of charity: Money Tree but the items are the same few items that just show up differently as you refresh the best things you can get here are lutari feather and earth faeries the rest is junk. you can get 1 item about every hour here.
Beads: You can only get these by referring people, being referred and signing up, or random events (so ive heard)
If you have any other questions just ask
edit: Also the multiple pets thing is a glitch I have 5 pets because when I was trying to create one of my lutari my cellphone said it couldnt send to the internet. so I pushed back and finished creating it again and it gave me both.
Games:
Blockstravaganza!: Its like Bejewelled but easier (you can switch 2 blocks that dont end up in a row) and you don't really get much np from it(I ussually end up getting 200 by the time i lose) and you can send 10 times a day.
Go Go Lutari: Turmac Roll
Survival Academy: Train here using feathers. It is NOT cheaper than ANY training school. Feathers cost 80k-90k and for my level 50 pet it takes 3.
Wheel of happiness: All I have ever won from this is 250 np 500np and a full heal. can be spun every 30 minutes and costs 100 np
Lutari Savings Bank: Just a branch of the national neopian bank
Island Market: I used to be able to make huge profit here but now everything has started rapidly crashing in price. items that were unbuyable are now 10k. you can buy 3 items before they tell you they are sold out then you have to wait for about an hour.
Fluorescent Pools: Healing Springs
Brianas Quests: Says she gives you random event quests but I havent gotten one all of my random events have been my pets wanting specific lutari themed food.
Island Gossip: news
Bog of charity: Money Tree but the items are the same few items that just show up differently as you refresh the best things you can get here are lutari feather and earth faeries the rest is junk. you can get 1 item about every hour here.
Beads: You can only get these by referring people, being referred and signing up, or random events (so ive heard)
If you have any other questions just ask
edit: Also the multiple pets thing is a glitch I have 5 pets because when I was trying to create one of my lutari my cellphone said it couldnt send to the internet. so I pushed back and finished creating it again and it gave me both.
Wed Jul 05, 2006 7:33 am
GIR wrote:twinklyspangle wrote:I'm sorry, could someone please clarify a few things for me?
Do the beads have an 'Add to talisman' option?
Can you SEE the beads once they have been added?
What happens if you get all the beads?
Yes, yes, and I don't know. One person's petpage showed a screenshot of her nearly-complete talisman, and a following line of text was copied from where you haggle with a shopkeeper, and included a line saying the person received a discount due to the talisman.
If anyone has a screenshot of this then I would very much like to see it!
Wed Jul 05, 2006 7:58 am
twinklyspangle wrote:GIR wrote:twinklyspangle wrote:I'm sorry, could someone please clarify a few things for me?
Do the beads have an 'Add to talisman' option?
Can you SEE the beads once they have been added?
What happens if you get all the beads?
Yes, yes, and I don't know. One person's petpage showed a screenshot of her nearly-complete talisman, and a following line of text was copied from where you haggle with a shopkeeper, and included a line saying the person received a discount due to the talisman.
If anyone has a screenshot of this then I would very much like to see it!
I'd love to see it too!
Wed Jul 05, 2006 8:18 am
Bah. Neopets on cellphones. It'll never last.