Abide by your policy

I speak for myself but I'm positive 99% of your customers share my viewpoint.


Since we're all traders here, I'm sure we all know that an investment constitutes as an act of devoting time, energy, and capital towards something that we expect to be worthwhile.


When we the customers decide to subscribe to Multicharts or purchase a lifetime license for $2000, we are investing our time, energy and capital in not only the Multicharts software, but also company PROMISES and POLICIES.


One such ADVERTISED POLICY is one of your main selling points, which is the UPGRADE POLICY. Taken directly from your main advertisement page, it states the following:


"Upgrade policy

All future software upgrades are free.

Watch your investment grow with free minor and major upgrades. Both new and existing customers will benefit to maximum possible extent by never having to pay for new features or functionality. As technology progresses, so will your requirements and your trading software has to keep up. We feel that our customers have enough to worry about, and we have made it one worry less — your software will always be the latest trading software available, and all upgrades are free."




Key points taken from the above ADVERTISEMENT and POLICY PROMISED by Multicharts:


1) "ALL FUTURE software upgrades are FREE."

2) "Watch your investment grow with FREE MINOR AND MAJOR UPGRADES."

3) "Customers will benefit to MAXIMUM POSSIBLE EXTENT by NEVER HAVING TO PAY FOR NEW FEATURES or FUNCTIONALITY"

4) "Your software will always be the latest trading software available, and all upgrades are FREE."




4/5 or 80% of the sentences in the above policy repeat what promise? Oh yeah. FREE UPGRADES. But do we get that? Lets take a look.



On the "Whats new" page (https://www.multicharts.com/whats-new/), it shows that on December 16th, Multicharts 14.0 Build 22995 Release 4 was announced which stated that a new Backtesting Edition is available for PURCHASE.


What's more is that going to the "Features" section, we see that the Backtesting Edition is NOT ONLY ADVERTISED AS IF ITS INCLUDED in a license along with all the other features (since they've included it in the feature list and don't state directly that it doesn't come with the full license), but it is ADVERTISED WITHOUT INFORMING YOU that it costs money AFTER A LICENSE PURCHASE as well. The only thing that it states other than how it will benefit you, if you buy Multicharts, is that it is a "different platform" and therefor ASP that is included in the BE will not work with a standard full license.



Only after digging through release notes and scrolling to the bottom of the BTE page on Multicharts Wiki, which most customers wont do, does someone realize that it has a hidden cost. This can be considered FALSE ADVERTISING (If you do not think this ridiculous promotion is false advertisement, especially given your policy, then you must admit to loop holing(calling it a "separate platform" in regard to ASP compatibility but using that specific wording to exempt it from your free upgrade policy).).


1) This goes DIRECTLY AGAINST 80% of YOUR POLICY which states that ALL FUTURE MINOR AND MAJOR UPGRADES ARE FREE.


2) This DIRECTLY EXPLOITS customers based on your threats of terminating our accounts if we open them on two separate computers (https://www.multicharts.com/net/purchase/). Again, this also goes against your policy which states "Customers will benefit to MAXIMUM POSSIBLE EXTENT by NEVER HAVING TO PAY FOR NEW FEATURES or FUNCTIONALITY". Maximum possible extent includes already developed tools by Mulicharts that fix a major flaw of the software and agreement. Maximum possible extent DOES NOT MEAN you can go against your POLICY and EXPLOIT customers by giving them a PAID SOLUTION TO A PROBLEM YOU CAUSE (Threatening to terminate our accounts if we want to backtest while trading (one account on two separate computers)).


You know we can't have an account open on two computers, because you're the ones threatening termination of our license. You know we are in need of such a fix. At the same time, you charge us extra for a feature ADVERTISED as FREE, GIVEN THE POLICY, which solves a problem that YOU cause.


This is the epitome of create a problem - offer a solution.



When we the customers invest in Multicharts, we expect Multicharts to abide by its own policy, and the promises made to us. We were promised to benefit to the maximum possible extent, which includes but not limited to NOT BEING EXPLOITED.



I do not mean to come across as rude, and I apologize if I do. I want to continue using Multicharts and watch my investment grow, which is why I am being critical. Income tax was supposed to be temporary when it was enacted in 1913 but look where we are now. If we the customers do not speak up, then the next feature is going to cost us, and then one after that, and the one after that.



I implore you to abide by your upgrade policy, for the sake of your current and future customers, as well as the future of Multicharts.



Thank you for your time.





Sources:
https://www.multicharts.com/whats-new/
https://www.multicharts.com/net/purchase/
https://www.multicharts.com/net/features/bte/