There has been no such statement. There is this comment by one of DDB's product managers--from today's "AMA," which indicates they know that "buying twice" is a pinch point for many people, and are hopeful to be able to do something, but it's (understandably) very non-specific at this point.
As you mention, there are a lot of reasons why it still is likely to be hard/problematic/unlikely, including the fact that turning WOTC "books" into data for the character sheet/listings/etc. and designing/updating/maintaining the database behind it is a lot of work, and people deserve to be paid for their work.
Not only that, but they'd have to find a way to prevent people from simply going into a game/book store, copying the code inside the book, and getting a free copy of the book on DDB.
More than likely, it will have to be free digital vouchers with purchases of physical books made through the website.
I agree. I'm not buying all the books AGAIN just to be able to use D&D beyond, especially considering the STEEP price of the digital content. If you already have the physical copies of the books, 25-35 dollars for the digital acces to them is just WAY too much. And that is something not to forget. You're not ACTUALLY buying the books here on D&D beyond. You're buying acces to the content of those books, for SOLE USE ON D&D beyond. You can't even use your purchase outside of this website or the D&D beyond APP.
And yes people need to get paid. But consider this. The digital content you're buying already exists. It's nothing new and is already there in our physical copies. You're paying for digital content that already was created before. Secondly, transferring this content to digital format also isn't a massive effort. Books are and have been printed for decades now from digital files, created in all kinds of digital programs. So even the physical copies started out as a digital creation before being printed from these digital files. Transferring it to a website isn't that much of an effort. Really the only thing that actually costs anything is the maintenance and updating of the app and website. But for that we ALSO have to pay a subscription fee.
Heck i can't even create a standard character limited to the player's handbook content here on D&D beyond. (cleric only has LIFE domain available for example).
So no. I totally agree with the OP. If you have the physical copies already, you should be able to get the digital content for peanuts (2-5 dollars) or even for free. Another 25-35 dollars for a digital version of content we already paid for is just too much IMO. It's enough to deter me from using D&D beyond for my games. The price of 25-35 dollars for the digital "books" (which aren't actually the books, just the use of the content), is WAY too high to begin with. Let alone having to pay a monthly subscription on top of that.
And yes people need to get paid. But consider this. The digital content you're buying already exists. It's nothing new and is already there in our physical copies. You're paying for digital content that already was created before. Secondly, transferring this content to digital format also isn't a massive effort. Books are and have been printed for decades now from digital files, created in all kinds of digital programs. So even the physical copies started out as a digital creation before being printed from these digital files. Transferring it to a website isn't that much of an effort. Really the only thing that actually costs anything is the maintenance and updating of the app and website. But for that we ALSO have to pay a subscription fee.
It's important to remember that D&D Beyond doesn't just host digital versions of the books, but also integrates them into various tools for lots of automation features. Here's some of the work involved:
Converting the original material in whatever form it's delivered in into site compatible markup. Remember that the digital originals would likely be formatted for print, not digital display, and certainly wouldn't use the D&D Beyond markup for linking to stuff like monsters or magic items
Formatting the new compendium content for layout, tables, art etc
Breaking out every monster, spell, magic item etc into its own listing and entering the information
Setting up the various modifiers and dice expressions to make those listings work within the tools
Testing said modifiers/expressions etc within the system
Adding subclasses and races to the database
Setting up their modifiers
Testing said modifiers
Adding new features to the backend to support new game rules
I can assure you, with every new book there is a lot of work that goes into getting it ready for D&D Beyond. It's not, nor has it ever been "copy from word doc, paste into site, done"
1. The Player's Handbook is a paid product just like any other D&D book. Why would you expect to be able to use it for free? The Basic Rules already exist for free, which is why you're able to make characters using those rules without paying.
2. If transfering the content to digital isn't a massive effort, do it yourself. You're allowed to use the Homebrew tools to recreate official options for your own use. If you own the book physically (or pirated it, I don't know), you already have access to the rules necessary to make it. You just are NOT allowed to publish it, as you do not own publishing rights for the works.
3. You do not need to pay for a subscription. The subscription just gives you access to additional features, such as an infinite character limit (keep in mind that characters take up space on servers that D&D Beyond has to pay for) and the ability to share non-homebrew content you own (Homebrew is always shared with your campaigns regardless of subscription level). None of this is required.
I know there are a million reasons why they wouldn't do this, but have they made a statement on if they would be doing this or not?
There has been no such statement. There is this comment by one of DDB's product managers--from today's "AMA," which indicates they know that "buying twice" is a pinch point for many people, and are hopeful to be able to do something, but it's (understandably) very non-specific at this point.
As you mention, there are a lot of reasons why it still is likely to be hard/problematic/unlikely, including the fact that turning WOTC "books" into data for the character sheet/listings/etc. and designing/updating/maintaining the database behind it is a lot of work, and people deserve to be paid for their work.
Trying to Decide if DDB is for you? A few helpful threads: A Buyer's Guide to DDB; What I/We Bought and Why; How some DMs use DDB; A Newer Thread on Using DDB to Play
Helpful threads on other topics: Homebrew FAQ by IamSposta; Accessing Content by ConalTheGreat;
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Not only that, but they'd have to find a way to prevent people from simply going into a game/book store, copying the code inside the book, and getting a free copy of the book on DDB.
More than likely, it will have to be free digital vouchers with purchases of physical books made through the website.
I agree. I'm not buying all the books AGAIN just to be able to use D&D beyond, especially considering the STEEP price of the digital content. If you already have the physical copies of the books, 25-35 dollars for the digital acces to them is just WAY too much. And that is something not to forget. You're not ACTUALLY buying the books here on D&D beyond. You're buying acces to the content of those books, for SOLE USE ON D&D beyond. You can't even use your purchase outside of this website or the D&D beyond APP.
And yes people need to get paid. But consider this. The digital content you're buying already exists. It's nothing new and is already there in our physical copies. You're paying for digital content that already was created before. Secondly, transferring this content to digital format also isn't a massive effort. Books are and have been printed for decades now from digital files, created in all kinds of digital programs. So even the physical copies started out as a digital creation before being printed from these digital files. Transferring it to a website isn't that much of an effort. Really the only thing that actually costs anything is the maintenance and updating of the app and website. But for that we ALSO have to pay a subscription fee.
Heck i can't even create a standard character limited to the player's handbook content here on D&D beyond. (cleric only has LIFE domain available for example).
So no. I totally agree with the OP. If you have the physical copies already, you should be able to get the digital content for peanuts (2-5 dollars) or even for free. Another 25-35 dollars for a digital version of content we already paid for is just too much IMO. It's enough to deter me from using D&D beyond for my games. The price of 25-35 dollars for the digital "books" (which aren't actually the books, just the use of the content), is WAY too high to begin with. Let alone having to pay a monthly subscription on top of that.
It's important to remember that D&D Beyond doesn't just host digital versions of the books, but also integrates them into various tools for lots of automation features. Here's some of the work involved:
I can assure you, with every new book there is a lot of work that goes into getting it ready for D&D Beyond. It's not, nor has it ever been "copy from word doc, paste into site, done"
Find my D&D Beyond articles here
Three things.
1. The Player's Handbook is a paid product just like any other D&D book. Why would you expect to be able to use it for free? The Basic Rules already exist for free, which is why you're able to make characters using those rules without paying.
2. If transfering the content to digital isn't a massive effort, do it yourself. You're allowed to use the Homebrew tools to recreate official options for your own use. If you own the book physically (or pirated it, I don't know), you already have access to the rules necessary to make it. You just are NOT allowed to publish it, as you do not own publishing rights for the works.
3. You do not need to pay for a subscription. The subscription just gives you access to additional features, such as an infinite character limit (keep in mind that characters take up space on servers that D&D Beyond has to pay for) and the ability to share non-homebrew content you own (Homebrew is always shared with your campaigns regardless of subscription level). None of this is required.