Are you a Fortune Teller?

[Christos Teriakis]

Let's have a bit fan. If you think that you're a bit fortune teller, how do you think that will be vBulletin after 3 years? Let's say by the end of 2015?

Here is what I think about:

• More prayers will be in the field. No it's not a typo (prayers instead players). As the market will becomes more and more shorter due to social networks, forum software companies will need to pray for having sales. So my first opinion is that the prices will be lower than today.
• vBulletin will partnership with software companies to sell on its own popular addons. Just like with Skimlinks and Forum Runner now, you'll see Classifieds, Reviews, Galleries etc, to be officially intergraded with vBulletin. That's why don't expect to find any competition to them from single coders/designers. Thus, you like it or not, you'll have to buy them in any price they ask for. And you know very well what happens if there are no competitors.
• vBulletin.org should not exists at least the way that is operating now. For sure should be a marketplace but from a few (and well selected coders/designers).

And some prophecy for the industry in general. Forum based communities should be draw down day by day. For this I've already statistics. Some months ago I decided to check some of the websites that I had in file. Almost 70% of them where just dead websites. Not exist anymore. A percentage of about 5% has changed platform,and from the rest 25% still using vB, half of them are still in vB3 versions.

So... what's your prophecy?

Chris