iRacing.com has announced several very interesting news today, the most interesting being a significant price drop that reduces the costs of both membership and content.
The price for an annual membership has been lowered by 37%, other membership options have also been lowered between 26% & 33%. The price for new cars has been dropped from $15 to $11.95, long tracks now sell for $14.95 while short tracks are available for $11.95.
But iRacing isn’t just lowering the prices, it will start paying their stalwart members as busy racers will be able to receive up to $10 per 12-week racing season. To qualify for the race participation program, iRacing subscribers have to compete in eight different race weeks during the cause of a season, activity that can earn subscribers up to $40 each year.
Starting with the new season on November 3rd, iRacing will also be introducing hosted racing, opening their simulation to private leagues and racing clubs. Hosted iRacing turns regular iRacing subscribers into Series Hosts, all that’s needed is a PQR (Practice/Qualifying/Race) package that is available for $3 per package.
The package allows the host to open a session that can be customised to any need with various settings including car, track, type of race, min/max iRating/safety rating and more. Each session consists of practice, qualifying and race of adjustable length. Private sessions can be started by any subscriber who has purchased such a package, other subscribers can join these sessions free of additional costs.
drowsy
October 16th, 2009 at 02:01
Excellent. I’m taking a break from the game until my 911 Wheel arrives, but will definitely go for the annual membership. I guess this also means that iRacing is doing well money-wise, and that’s awesome because it is an amazing product.
dj0100
October 16th, 2009 at 02:10
Great news.
2point8
October 16th, 2009 at 03:25
Me: “You couldn’t pay me to play iRacing!”
Kinda eating my own words now eh?
moppenheimer
October 16th, 2009 at 06:11
In before trolls…..
Stream
October 16th, 2009 at 09:54
Hmm, I’ve actually allready prepaid for 2 years (don’t ask me why). Wonder if I will get any coupons for free tracks/cars as a compensation for the price-drop.
jux
October 16th, 2009 at 10:28
You won’t. You got your compensation in the form of $60 credit for each yearly subscription. The new pricing doesn’t involve any extra credit for subscriptions. Now you can get the credits by participating in the official series.
tezuka_18
October 16th, 2009 at 13:56
So with this new annual price of $99, will users still recieve $60 worth of free iRacing credits?
DW
October 16th, 2009 at 14:14
I don’t think business works like that :)
If you have plenty of customers at your current prices you don’t drop your prices. You drop your prices to attract more customers.
Given the number of subscribers its very unlikely that iRacing have reached anything like break even yet – there is not only ongoing costs but the four year development costs to recoup.
eiwfihaaa
October 16th, 2009 at 15:57
Drowsy – the total opposite infact, you complete n00b.
Ive been on iracing for 2 months now, grids are scarce, and higher up the classes there’s hardly anyone playing. Its in a terrible state.
Last week they announced plans from November onwards to let people fastrack up to higher licenses, instead of having to wait 12 weeks, which was ridiculous. Why? Because people aren’t prepared to pay a load of money to get a Class A licence, and race a nice fast car, only to find there’s no one else around.
Now they’ve FINALLY dropped prices loads. Why? Because it was a bloody ripoff in the first place. It’s okay if you have a full time job, but for the decent simracers, who aren’t 40+ years old, had no reason to change when they were getting good competition on rfactor, with potential prize money (simraceway).
Its so clear from this that they’ve had to drastically rethink their business model to try and attract more people to join.
There’s still problems with it, I bought the Star Mazda car – but the faster the car, the longer the races. Star mazda races are 45 minutes, the class A cars races last ONE HOUR.
It’s ridiculous. Who is going to casually sit there for a whole hour for goodness sake. Which is why there are now plans to create optional sprint races.
Finally. iracing is being sorted out.
the.cosmic.pope
October 16th, 2009 at 16:01
Kinda dramatic there. The StatMonkey thread shows the number of active members is at one of the highest levels since the public launch. There has been the usual end of season dip, just like you get in every other league, but otherwise it still higher than ever. There was 115 more races this week compared to the same week of last season.
This graph might not work due to the odd URL, but it is a participation graph.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?chg=0,19.6&chtt=Weekly+Active+Members+Since+Launch&chs=300×150&cht=lc&chco=0077CC&chds=0,5100&chxt=y&chxr=0,0,5100&chd=t:3030,3161,3075,3194,3129,2878,2732,2554,2599,2567,2430,2462,2425,2978,2869,2820,2730,2700,2697,2710,2560,2671,2635,2658,2736,2897,3544,3513,3557,3403,3464,3369,3362,3247,3193,3114,3145,3514,3616,3898,3999,4025,4128,4098,4054,4148,4023,4105,4102,3962,4044,4192,5054,4960,4957,4842,4940,4686,4521,4337,4358,4158
Howie47
October 16th, 2009 at 16:12
I figured they had a problem when they released the last two, “free trials”. Some thing they should have done, (and more) from the beginning. But they were trying to hold onto there product tightly to give the impression it was very valuable. Well they originally said it was for “real race drivers to practice with”, so if that wasn’t just hype; let them bare the brunt of the financial support. Don’t expect “gamers” to make that kind of investment. I’d rather invest at a place like “Simraceway”, or “Racedepartment”, that has prizes, TV coverage of races, and prestige before a much wider Sim community.
stabiz
October 16th, 2009 at 16:50
Its thursday, and Howie still hates iRacing because its to expensive. Stay tuned.
eiwfihaaa
October 16th, 2009 at 17:34
why would real race drivers use iracing to practice on……..when they obviously can afford to do the real thing. Because they do the real thing.
so dumb. that graph youve posted shows a peak of 5000 people playing. which is nothing. if you log on on any given day there’s maybe 200 people playing regularly.
as an iracing member for the past 2-3 months i can tell you that, even on the forums, grids with more than 5 or 6 people are scarce, and people aren’t prepared to sit there for a whole hour. its absurd.
Why do you think they’re actively trying to get more people to participate?
‘Finally, the new Race Participation Program, an earned credit of up to $40.00 per year ($10.00 per 12-week season) will be available to all iRacing members regardless of subscription type, replaces the previous subscription purchase incentive program. Existing quantity purchase discounts of up to an additional 25% remain in effect.
“We want to encourage our members to race more frequently, and we’re going to reward them for doing so,” Gardner said in making the announcement. “Really, it’s a win-win deal for our members. People enjoy racing against other drivers, and bigger fields just add to the fun and make the racing better. Someone who takes full advantage of the ‘Credit for Race Participation Program’ will earn $40 per year.”
………………………………….. what does that tell you.
because that tells me not enough people are playing, and they’re having to do all this to get more people to play, more often.
Paul Kelly
October 16th, 2009 at 18:13
Prestige? Then why are the most talented sim racing studs in the world — guys like Gregor Huttu, Richard Towler, Shawn Purdy and the like — competing in the Pro Series at iRacing?
Howie47
October 16th, 2009 at 18:14
It’s Friday on my side of the world.
Howie47
October 16th, 2009 at 18:27
OH. I forgot the upcoming RTR. It will be exciting to see what they come up with. Beating the real deal. Now that is prestige. Competition is good. It brings prices down and quality up. I might even buy iRacing some day. Once they come off their elitist perch.
Klaas Jan
October 16th, 2009 at 19:32
Lol, that pretty much sums up your endless plug of Shift….
Frankalexandre
October 16th, 2009 at 20:06
I really hope they make sprint races. I have 100% content but hardly play the game lately because i wanna race the Lotus and Impala B but can have the free time for 1 hour races, plus practise .
ermax18
October 16th, 2009 at 20:23
What is wrong with a 1hr race? Lack of free time or lack of attention span? Or is it that people blow their races early on and just want to move on to the next race? Just curios.
BSR-WiX
October 16th, 2009 at 20:38
iRacing was worth every cent before the price drop, so now it only became better.
As with all things that rule, allot will hate it just for the sake of it :-)
jux
October 16th, 2009 at 21:48
That is not true at all. You make a point about the highest series, but it gets totally lost in the pointless false exaggerations. Grids with more than 5-6 people are not scarce at all. Up-to-date stats can be found at http://statmonkey.is-a-geek.net/ilom/whatWhen. Many series have dozens of drivers almost 24/7.
By the way, real drivers on all levels of motorsports use simulators to practice nowadays. If you don’t understand why, that’s your problem.
Frankalexandre
October 16th, 2009 at 22:54
ermax18 , i have a whife and a baby (1 year) and i can play only when both are sleeping. The next day i must wake up early…its hardly to play a game till 1/2 a.m. and still keep up. My last Impala race finished at 2 a.m. due to yelow flags. My weekends are for the family, not for the computer. So my only choice are Solstice/Skip/Legends race, but they are not fun as the Mazda/Lotus/Impala.
ermax18
October 17th, 2009 at 02:02
Frankalexandre, I hear you. I have a wife and a 2.5 year old. I also have to wake up to go to work at 6am. I also have a life and don’t like racing on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays. I have to race after my son goes down around 8PM. My league races Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Qualy at 9PM, and a 40min race starting at 10:05PM. It works well for me. I don’t see how people race/practice every night of the week. I guess if your kids are grown up and out of the house and a wife no longer wants to look at you it would work. Hahaha. But I thought the whole attraction to iRacing was the flexibility of the schedule.
Diswanio
October 17th, 2009 at 11:04
does’nt she mind you playing games? Does she understand
ermax18
October 17th, 2009 at 17:17
She sings in a band for fun on Thursday nights. She is gone anyways. :)
Diswanio
October 17th, 2009 at 20:01
cool! Sorry i can’t hear you sing hun
ermax18
October 17th, 2009 at 23:25
Yeah, that would make sense. Drag a 2.5 year old to a bar to listen to your wife sing every Thursday night until 12am. Nice try.
She has been singing for a long time now. I have been to see her more times then I can count. She has her hobbies, I have mine. That is sort of how it works.
Paul Kelly
October 19th, 2009 at 15:53
If you can pry yourself away from your beloved uber-sim Shift, please describe the reasons why you see iRacing as “elitist.” I’m all eyes.