[TheLastSuperman]

vBulletin isn't dying however it's not like vB5 is taking the community base and avid owners in a direction that seems very promising imo. If things continue down this current path I foresee more customers leaving this platform and moving to others... while they sit and spin wheels on vB5 everyone else is catching up and if vB5 is ANY indication of how vB6 will be I'm scared, very scared to be quite honest.

If things are to turn around, we need to see something from vBulletin and not just a new announcement about the "Cloud", I mean wow just wow... a nice concept but the timing was 100% wrong.

Let's review some things that have occurred since vB4 released up until now i.e. vB5 era, bearing in mind this is all my personal opinion:

What was done: Buyout after buyout... is it owned by Jelsoft... no... owned by Internet Brands now ohh no wait that's right, it's this firm now who owns it - Hellman & Friedman Capital Partners VI.
My thoughts on this: Here are the rocket-scientist currently in charge who have staff running in circles like chickens with their heads cut off, spending time and resources on the "Cloud" before making vB5 very very very stable, sad when we see threads and posts like this on a daily if not weekly basis and no, that one is just the tip of the iceberg and an example from vbulletin.org not including the same and if not more threads of the same nature on vbulletin.com. I want to be clear that in my personal opinion the staff are working hard, they are being told what to do - that's what most call a job and they do their best... it's a management issue and should not be reflected on coding/support/other staff.

What was done: A change to the licensing agreement.
My thoughts on this: What a complete and utter disaster, this overall change to how things worked lead to many leaving this software and others who didn't leave it simply left a very bad taste in their mouth. I could say more about this but I'll keep it short and simple by saying I was here during those times, the tone and overall morale of the community took a hard hit and has never since recovered. *More changes have occurred and most certainly within the last 5 years despite staff comments on vbulletin.com to the contrary, therefor to the contrary of that the EU licensing structure was changed within the past 2/3 years.

What was done: A mobile style was released and it was paid for initially then they quit selling that and included it for free.
My thoughts on this: That was great, then it seemed as if they did not care to support the mobile style and thought to include it in the base product so it could slowly die off without much of a fuss.

What was done: A Mobile Suite released.
My thoughts on this: Ahh so to me this seems like they found another way to make money, smart honestly from a business perspective as they are a business but why slap us in the face w/ a mobile style then not support it only to ask money for a mobile suite? Indeed it is quite different... Android App, iPhone App more similar to tapatalk than the mobile style but another example of one thing being left to die while another one has time invested into it and neither seem too hot currently if truth be told.

What was done: A Facebook App developed, sold separately. Did well for a while, had many using it but then it died off as well.
My thoughts on this: Doesn't seem like its being supported anymore, pity.

I could list more, I could clarify more but I won't as the past speaks and current actions and direction taken regarding the product speak for themselves. I do not find vB5 to be a very promising future for vBulletin and I sincerely hope it improves, promptly.

^ Perhaps it's a little or a lot of that involved but in the least part of the equation and I'm not alone in thinking some of this, I may have worded it differently but others think the same if not similar per some recent discussions and others.

https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=308445

^ Notably from that thread this comment regarding big-board customers and he's exactly right imo:

Originally Posted by Princeton

xenforo still has a lot of growing up to do - at the rate they are going I give them 1-2 years before they start attracting a larger audience

vbulletin really shot itself in the foot with vb5 - lost many customers ... there are still many out there that haven't upgraded to vb5 or any other platform ... they are just waiting ... still holding on to 'vbulletin' ... many are big boards ... hoping that something happens

If vbulletin continues to lose big board customers they lose their biggest marketing opportunity.

I started with vbulletin over a decade ago because of big board sites that I frequented. They all used vbulletin. If they and other vbulletin big board sites switch today to another platform the potential for new customers will drop for vbulletin. All those big board users will no longer be exposed to vbulletin. They will now be exposed to another platform ... maybe even trying it out for themselves ... downloading ... installing ... exploring - just like I did over a decade ago with vbulletin. It's a lost opportunity too convert a user to customer.

Me, I'm still hoping for a vbulletin turn-around. Still waiting...

So while I'm not bashing vBulletin either, I must still stand my ground opinion-wise and hope for improvement.