I wish to share with you a brief encounter I had with a leading FS developer recently after raising my concern about their position in the market and the relative power they could wield as a result. The subject arose in a discussion about a proposed release they had been promoting for quite some time. Since the original announcement had been made, much water has passed under the bridge for this developer and the market itself; notably with the debut of FSX in late 2006. While the purpose of this editorial isn't to delve into the various concerns surrounding the release of FSX or the huge technology jump that it is forcing on the market, it's relevant to note that FSX has stirred up some secondary issues with respect to FS Developers and how they can potentially use their influence to control the market for their own interests.

To speak with any rationality on the subject, we must first examine the FS industry as a whole and observe the paradigm shift that is occurring both in the technology spectrum and in the unwritten field of ethics that, until recently, was very much focused on expanding the flight simulation community and providing a diverse, unrestricted experience for an avid flight simmer. The community was born from (and is still strengthened by) the freeware market and the opportunity for amateur developers to flex their creative muscles and share a multitude of aircraft, scenery and miscellaneous add-ons with the rest of us. For many of these developers, (myself included) the reward from such hard work is the satisfaction of seeing others enjoying our creations and enriching the flight simulation experience. I also believe we are the starting block of the 'market' as we offer free software and services to new simmers who typically begin their flightsim experience experimenting with freeware packages before graduating onto something bigger and better.

That 'bigger and better' is, of course, the Payware industry which now dominates our desktop with reputable distributors such as Flight 1 and Just Flight; these and other companies have revolutionized the way in which we gain access to hundreds of products from many developers around the world. I place much credit with such distributors as the catalyst through which the payware market really started to grab hold around the introduction of FS2002. Increased SDK support from Microsoft and exponential growth of the community itself offered new opportunities for developers that wished to take their talent to the next level and introduce expansions to the MSFS platform at modest prices. Most important, pioneering work from gents like Pete Dowson set a new industry in motion by making FS accessible to programmers and developers of all levels of ability. It is because of this diversity that the flightsim community is what it is today, and it is to the pioneers of our community that all developers must pay homage for providing the environment and the opportunity to grow a business focused on the hobby that we all know and love.

Unfortunately, the almighty 'dollar' (I'm sure non-colonials will pardon the expression) is beginning to have an adverse impact on our community in a way which I fear could diminish the diversity and the character it has stood on for the last decade. As with all things, in any environment where competition is a driving force, certain superstars emerge after the market has gone through a few iterations. These superstars I speak of are the 'big guys'; those developers that have make a huge dent on the market with large-scale, high quality and in some cases: high priced product. I'm sure a few names have popped into your head and no doubt, a few ads may have crossed your screen in the last few hours to debut their wares. I take my hat off to these companies, they are where they are because they have brought something to the market that is special. In return, the market has granted them a reputation and precedence over many of the other rival developers due to one or two of their success stories. and therein lies the problem.

Bear in mind that I discussed diversity as a key component of our community. Take some thought as to why that is a good thing and how that diverse, level-playing field provided the same opportunities to the fore mentioned big guys as it did to many other developers. Just as in sports, you have a much better chance of witnessing greatness if every person who takes an interest is provided with the opportunity to explore their own talent and take it as far as it can go. The minute you restrict that playing field, you place more power in the hands of those who already have already achieved greatness and reduce the opportunity (and the likelihood) that you will witness new, up-and-coming talent that can boost the competition and maintain the diversity in our market.

So how does this play back to my original concern? I have noticed recently that developers, particularly those who have already sat on a pedestal or two, have begun to announce 'new' products earlier and earlier , particularly full-featured aircraft that have not yet come to fruition on the current platform. (FS2004) While I'm not necessarily alleging that there is a deliberate agenda behind this, my concern is that these so-called announcements can reduce the credibility of the market as a whole and push out the new talent. How? ,because I fear that there are many developers out there waiting for an opportunity of their own; up-and-comers that want to enter the market with the same chances of success that their predecessors have enjoyed.

For example, if you are a developer, you might identify that a particular aircraft or idea has not been explored on the current platform and decide to start a project of your own.