I think the decision to put the 4k resolution behind a pay wall is bad for both parties. You'd be better off using it to attract new customers and get old ones to buy more cards, instead of using it to make a minority of us spend more money.

From the very first post from Celine.'This offer is available for only 59$ per year.'Execept it isn't for me. The subscription page is going to charge me 59 Euros. I'm in the UK and the exchange rate means I am going to pay £5 more in Euros than Dollars. Is the first post incorrect or is there any way I can get the dollar purchase? I have my server set to US Los Angeles.Have to say was about to press 'go' when I noticed at the very last second :(

When we sell in €, we pay VAT on the transaction, we don't apply this VAT to the price paid by the customer... would you prefer to pay the conversion of $59 into € + VAT ?

From the very first post from Celine.'This offer is available for only 59$ per year.'Execept it isn't for me. The subscription page is going to charge me 59 Euros. I'm in the UK and the exchange rate means I am going to pay £5 more in Euros than Dollars. Is the first post incorrect or is there any way I can get the dollar purchase? I have my server set to US Los Angeles.Have to say was about to press 'go' when I noticed at the very last second :(
When we sell in €, we pay VAT on the transaction, we don't apply this VAT to the price paid by the customer... would you prefer to pay the conversion of $59 into € + VAT ?

Thank you for the explanation, I wasn't aware of the VAT situation. Really appreciate you clarifying that, purchasing now :)

If I haven't upgrade to premium,previews is 4K?

My two cents:

• Discount is good, although I don't buy every card. I'm very picky, only buy cards depending on what I like.
• The point of 4k, idk, I still use 1080p screen so 3k is fine. I guess it's a good incentive for those wanting the best.
• The Joker card is the big thing, imho. I love you are giving us 1 but the Special Event cards being behind random chance games still is a bad formula. If you want Premium to be real Premium, let us buy those cards during membership. You could exclude them from the 20% extra discount, that's a fair trade most would do.

Of course the best way to deal with the whole situation would be make them purchaseable for everyone. Otherwise having them locked makes no sense.

Mhhh ... I think it's good and interesting and since I have Kamikaze's soul, I'm going to take a risk and tell them how is it.
The value of the offer is reasonable since implementing 4K is very expensive.

Mhhh ... I think it's good and interesting and since I have Kamikaze's soul, I'm going to take a risk and tell them how is it.
The value of the offer is reasonable since implementing 4K is very expensive.

They have been using a 5k camera for a while now so no, all it takes it for them to export in 4k as well as the existing "crystal clear+" resolutions which come from the same 5k source. Admitadly that will take some extra time but decent computers can do so real quick so adds only a tiny cost to production.

the 4 k option does not work for me with the Scyley Jam Show..On 4k the download gets *****..On 3k it worked...Exact! we're checking

Problem solved, you can download the 4k premium resolution of the new Scyley !
Enjoy !

@Celine
We can still not download F0523 (and I've tryed both servers).
2019-10-18T15:37:27 dlm: [VghdHeaderDownload::finish] WARNING["Server error [404] Error downloading http//eushows2ahead.istripper.com/f0523/res4K_f0523_it05_38912301.vghdhead ... - server replied: Not Found, free disk space:86.2%"]

note: I've removed a semilcon so it doesn't appear as a link.
Oh, and the italic tag doesn't work apparently

@johnybegood - you asked

So which came fist live service video games or porn? Just asking because I'm trying to figure out which ruined the other 1st.

Porn preceeded live video ganes by several thousand years. Photographic porn did it by more thatn 150 years. Video (i.e. cinematic) porn by more than 100 years.

From the very first post from Celine.'This offer is available for only 59$ per year.'Execept it isn't for me. The subscription page is going to charge me 59 Euros. I'm in the UK and the exchange rate means I am going to pay £5 more in Euros than Dollars. Is the first post incorrect or is there any way I can get the dollar purchase? I have my server set to US Los Angeles.Have to say was about to press 'go' when I noticed at the very last second :(
When we sell in €, we pay VAT on the transaction, we don't apply this VAT to the price paid by the customer... would you prefer to pay the conversion of $59 into € + VAT ?

tldr version: Why can we not pay for that Premium subscription with store credits?

Example 600 credits for Upgrade to Premium

The previous payment options when purchasing store credits gave customers a choice to select those payment providers they trust without the need to disclose credit card information.

@Z22 - you are forgetting the extra QA time and other overheads , I know that the QA team are volenteers but they are not the only people invovled in the QA process.

Thank you for the explanation, I wasn't aware of the VAT situation. Really appreciate you clarifying that, purchasing now :)

This brings me some memories... I raised some very embarrassingly vocal brouhaha about this difference between prices in dollars and euros some months (a year?) ago. 😄

Team members and maybe some forum members, too, can't (= don't want to) remember exactly, explained this issue to me then, but not before I had a made outlandish accusations of foul play and conspiracies and whatnot. Glad to know that other people can ask about this thing in a civilized way 😆

This offer is not for MAC-users because they can't update to the new version. Also they can't get the Joker-card, because the subscription date is before october 25th. Maybe there will be an update before this time.

The Mac version have now been released.

First impressions

It looks pretty good and according to what I expected

I leave some screens and a scene (.scn) formatted at 4k that you can use to test and see the differences of the different resolutions

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1F8QZeblktYYk-kEQeIurrDPJ5eDIILA5

Congratulatios!!!!

@Kassiopeia77 - you ask

Why can we not pay for that Premium subscription with store credits?

I also would appreciate being able to pay this way, but you have to look at it from Totem's point of view. Paying with previously bought credits is not the same as paying directly with cash. if we pay with cash then Totem immediately receive the money, However if we pay with credits that we have already bought Totem get nothing at all in the short term only the possibility, but not the certainty, that we will buy more credits at some time in the future, Getting paid now is far better than possibly (or even certainly) being paid the same amout at some time in the future.

To celebrate iStirpper Premium, we offer a JOKER card for every subscription run before Friday, October 25th which you can exchange for the new Skye Blue card.

So, will Mac users be able to take advantage of this offer?

According to the information visible three post above, yes.

@herve78350:

The Mac version have now been released.

I find it ludicrous that after 12 years and over 2700 cards, I'm not considered "premium". Also a card by a popular model like Skye Blue (literally one my usual must buys) is locked behind this "special event" joker mechanic is insane. I could understand event awards like discounts or a free card but straight up locking content surely can't be making money

I find it ludicrous that after 12 years and over 2700 cards, I'm not considered "premium". Also a card by a popular model like Skye Blue (literally one my usual must buys) is locked behind this "special event" joker mechanic is insane. I could understand event awards like discounts or a free card but straight up locking content surely can't be making money

Then what should I say? ;)

Regarding the special event cards, I am willing to pay more but honestly whom has a time to log on everyday to check if event is on and then with my number of cards I usually have too few new cards available in store to make 2 or 3 runs on lottery (usually 1) so I simply cannot get there - therefore being one of the top collectors actually works as disadvantage. An I am not alone in such situation...

20% discount on the new cards during the 10 days following their release,

Does this count for pre purchases like the advent calendar too?

Installing on a Mac

I was able to install on my Mac Pro under OSX 10.14.6 by doing it from the software. In my first attempt I tried from the web and got the .exe file instead. I enrolled in premium and I'm downloading 4K versions of all my crystal clear cards (91 cards).

Results

I saw the extra 20% discount for cards starting 10/10. I just purchased 3 CC+ cards for 11 credits each today.

I've played some 4K cards on my 43" 4K display. They look great and at 90% scale they look better than the 3K versions. I should say that the 3K cards look pretty good to me at 90% also.

Strategy

This will change my buying habits a little. I have always done a triage when a new card comes out. The cards I really like I buy immediately. Thats usually 10-20 a month -- say an average of 15 each month. I will seldom make back my average of $5/month premium membership, but I'll come fairly close. Another 5 or so that I consider marginal I mark as wishlist. With the wishlist items I wait till there is a "buy 4 get the 4th free sale" or until some are discounted to 20%. With the new pricing structure there is now less of a reason to use the wishlist so I will probably buy a few more cards each month and only buy the wishlist ones when a 4-for-3 sale comes along.

The effective cost to me for being a premium member will be about $1.25 per month. For this I also get 4K cards which I do like and one "free" special event card which is probably worth $5 to me since I paid about 3 times that much in games for each of the 6 SEC cards I already have. The net result is I expect to pay about $10 for my premium membership.

Alternative

If Totem had simply announced a 30% price increase for crystal clear cards at 4K I would have been happy and Totem would have made about the same amount. That would have required less new programming.

Special Event Cards

As for the SEC cards, I plan to be very careful. I generally don't buy things like the advent calendar and I won't in the future. I have also decided not to play the scratch game again. If there is a route that lets me buy or win an SEC without spending a lot on loosing plays or cards I don't want, I'll consider that. I'll give it more serious attention if the probabilities are announced. My current strategy will be to "spend" my joker this time next year on the SEC card I'd most like to have. Then I'll repeat the same thing the following year.

About Special Event Cards... I'm also hesitant of using the Joker card now that I have one. I would like to have the new Skye Blue card in my collection, but as there are no alternative methods to get it at the moment, I'm going to sit on it for a while.

I will use my Joker when they release a SEC card that I really, really want to have and there is not a clear path to obtain one in a reasonable cost-transparent way (= NOT sheer gambling).

@Z22 - you are forgetting the extra QA time and other overheads , I know that the QA team are volenteers but they are not the only people invovled in the QA process.

Other than checking the 4k export didn't bork the files what extra is there to check that isn't already been done for the other resolution, it's the same source data? I suppose with the higher resoultion there's a chance that glitches will show up more. Oh noes you said a naughty word /jk

For me i am voting with my wallet, i won't be spending any more money on istripper until they open up 4k for everyone. I doubt that they would care about that as this offer is for the whales who to be fair get left out of the tgif's so it's a good deal for them (just the extra % off is a good deal for them).

@Z22 - I am almost certain that an ex-QA team member has told us that they do look at all of the resolutions.

I doubt that they would care about that as this offer is for the whales who to be fair get left out of the tgif's so it's a good deal for them (just the extra % off is a good deal for them).

Nope, we actually have a discount level so high that extra 20% discount (so price 11 cr) is assured by previews discount that shows up randomly for everybody over their usual discount level so it really does not matter for me personally. BTW I am certain they excluded newest cards from that discount so it will negligate that effect or we would purchase for 8,8 in that given moment :lol -> but then it would take really long time to cash in the difference.

Regarding 4K resolution I agree, making another step in settings makes whole lotta work somebody must do and it has to be paid but I'd rather increase a bit shows price level than this. Not everybody uses over FHD screen. Not everybody needs 4K but it should be in range for everybody at price not extra subscription. Keep in mind few years ago some users ***** about problems with 4-5 FHD shows played at once with issues on not so bad PCs. 4K will require a really really top notch PC to have smooth 7-8 shows like some used to have. Then it isn't for everybody really. Perhaps in few years with more modern machines.

Not everybody has a fancy setup like mine - where for instance I would prefer to be able to assign shows to be displayed on certain screen I assign or on set of them.

I also agree that scalling 3K to 4K is very close really - you need to put your eyes close to the graphic grade screen to notice the details sometimes ;)

Regarding amounts of data required nowadays it should be in requirements 4-8 TB 7200 rpm fast HDD to have a space for them and smooth playback so this hobby becames even more expensive :lolz

So the offer says......
"This offer gives you the following :
20% discount on the new cards during the 10 days following their release,
20% discount on VR 180° clips during the 10 days following their release,
Unlock of the 4K resolution of the Crystal Clear+ quality shows,
Priority response from the customer service,
Highlighted profile and Premium skin!
This offer is available for $59 per year"

1. Is the the 20% savings off of the platinum card pricing or the original card price. Trying to do the math. $60 would buy approx 600 credits.... How many cards would I need to but to make this proposition a value.
2. Not interested in VR content at this point. I believe the tech has years to go before it will become more mainstream.
3. OK 4K resolution, now we can see hair folicles.
4. Priority response eh.... You had to go there.. I have 6 tickets in an open status aged 8 plus months. 4000+ cards purchases. But for $59.99 you'll answer my question...

How much for downloading the pictures and videos when you purchase the model rather than having to manually download the zip, extract, copy to a folder stucture and catalog?

How much to make 1000 credit button always available so that we don't get nailed for additional transaction fees?

5. No value in a highlighted profile/skin unless you live in the forums.

So I guess it between 1 and 4 for me...

Will there be an "UBER PLATINUM PREMIUM Whip cream" offer that will let us but the Special Event Cards Plus all of these features and Even faster tech support?

The is purposely both serious is some inquiry and cheeky in other observervations....
Don't lose your mind!

OK, I folded. I bought your damned PREMIUM membership, but only because I figured:

1. I buy every card anyway, so I'm no WORSE off for the next 5-6 months
2. I wanted the Skye Blue card, and the only way to get it is a JOKER (included)
3. After 5-6 months, I will start SAVING money / credits - a total of about $40/yr

I still think the deal stinks for most people, and I really think that Totem should go with something much simpler than all this JOKER card and PREMIUM stuff.

Just reward people for being loyal, and updating their collection. Do away with all these scratch cards, slot machines and other silly things. Do this instead:

1. Issue a new "Monthly Exclusive" card EVERY month in addition to all the regular cards
2. Announce the exclusive card at the start of the month, but don't release it until the 15th of the month
3. Offer people the Exclusive card for FREE with any 12 or more cards purchased in that month (perhaps Talent of the Month?)
4. Once the Exclusive card expires, place it back in the store for a 30% premium after the end of the month
5. Make additional "Special Event" cards separate, and price them at a 30% premium (e.g. Halloween, Xmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, July 4, FIFA, F1, whatever) on release

This way, it would be:
1. Straightforward to obtain exclusive monthly cards, simply by being a regular purchaser
2. If you missed a month of the FREE card, or you don't like at least 12 shows, you could always purchase that card anyway
3. You could always purchase "Special Event" cards whenever you want
4. By regularly buying 12 or more cards every month, you'll get a BONUS, rather than having to pay a PREMIUM (a very different feeling for customers)
5. People who don't want to buy EVERY card are still happy, because they can always buy 12 cards they actually WANT
6. Cheaper for Totem to implement, as the discount would be 1/13 (about 7.5%), rather than the 20% discsount with PREMIUM

If Totem did this, I think lots of people would be happy with that. I also think it isn't necessarily incompatible with the other promotions - like slot machine, scratch card, etc. These could be another way to "WIN" the exclusive card instead of buying shows you don't want.

Really, it's not that hard to imagine or implement, I think. Much better thant this scheme.

Still, I now have kept my collection up to date, and I look forward to having the discounts in 5-6 months time.

Oh, and in case anyone is wondering - your EFFECTIVE discount over a YEAR is about 8% once you take into account the extra $59 you're paying - ASSUMING you purchase EVERY card for a YEAR.

Your "discount" will be MUCH LESS than that if you don't buy all the cards, or indeed could be negative unless you plan to buy over 215 cards in the next year (about 20 cards a month).

So, not really that much benefit for the customer - but a lot of "Free Money" for Totem.

Be informed about your purchases.