> As a prospective buyer, I'm not much swayed by a promise of returns.
Aren’t you used to it in all other areas of life?
> I've been buying this sort of software since it was called "shareware" and was obtained on floppies or downloaded over XMODEM from a local BBS. I made a living from it for a long time.
Sure. At the time I was a poor student so I am familiar with the concept of shareware but never paid for it back then. However, I think this concept is not as intuitive to anyone who was not in tech space at that time.
> The fact that almost nobody has done it this way should indicate it's not as good as it sounds.
Perhaps, but this is not always how it works. Often there’s friction and inertia that blinds people to better alternatives.
> The App Store may work this way in practice, but the stated terms are that you request a refund and then it might be granted, at the discretion of Apple. They also explicitly state that requests might be refused for "abuse" which is not defined, and could very well include merely getting too many refunds.
Perhaps you’re right, but then all I can say is that painless refunds should be a thing.
Aren't I used to what in all other areas of life? Being able to try something without risk because I can always return it? Definitely not. The issues I mention apply everywhere. Physical items are even worse, because even the best return process requires me to actually go somewhere to do it.
Really? I thought it’s the norm in developed countries, that sellers choose to be good about return to avoid reputational damage and/or are forced to be so by customer protection laws.
Aren’t you used to it in all other areas of life?
> I've been buying this sort of software since it was called "shareware" and was obtained on floppies or downloaded over XMODEM from a local BBS. I made a living from it for a long time.
Sure. At the time I was a poor student so I am familiar with the concept of shareware but never paid for it back then. However, I think this concept is not as intuitive to anyone who was not in tech space at that time.
> The fact that almost nobody has done it this way should indicate it's not as good as it sounds.
Perhaps, but this is not always how it works. Often there’s friction and inertia that blinds people to better alternatives.
> The App Store may work this way in practice, but the stated terms are that you request a refund and then it might be granted, at the discretion of Apple. They also explicitly state that requests might be refused for "abuse" which is not defined, and could very well include merely getting too many refunds.
Perhaps you’re right, but then all I can say is that painless refunds should be a thing.