Is that what you would do? Crap all over the current customer base again?

I don't see that as a winning strategy. If they invested, they have a clear picture of all the financials (something nobody here has). I'm sure they want a return on their investment. But going after it too quick at the expense of everyone that put money into it already would be the fastest way to 1000 people demanding their money back. I'm confident they have a better plan than "Destroy JJP". And that is all this idea would do. That "new money" can't come from Hobbit without killing all the old money.

Once again JJP did not make Stern raise their prices, Stern did that themselves. Did Stern raise prices and start including a shaker motor, invisiglass / PDI glass, offer regular code updates, more tech / features, etc on their LEs? No. They just waited to see if people would pay the prices and they are.

Maybe blame the buyers and not either company as they are the ones choosing to buy the games. Prices can also come down if people are not buying the products but that isn't happening.

At some point buyers will say enough is enough and sales will slow. We are already seeing that with potential Ghostbusters customers saying they won't buy the game unless it comes with a color display. Also, recent Stern LEs don't appear to flying off the shelves.

It really shows how close JJP was to pulling a jpop. JJP apparently was really desperate to give up control.
But this is good for JJP. Someone with experience and brains needed to take control.
Now they need to just change the name of the company and logo and they'll be all set.

The sad part is, long after the doors are shut on JJP, the JJP fans will still be defending every foolish choice Jack made when he started this company. No different than the morons defending JPOP years ago. When are you people going to learn that Spooky is the only company, aside from Stern, that has a clue!......Walk before you run! Say goodbye to your precious Lawlor game, the BOM will be cut in half or possibly not produced without a $10k price tag.....and honestly, that's ok, because BOM or fancy screens with computers, don't equate to more fun.......Pinball 101!

Ok boys, time to down vote the voice of reason.......

What, like it won't have slide rails under the playfield?

Will this make you happy? Why try to ruin people's joy. If someone wants to be a fanboy, let them, whether it's JJP or Stern. I'll take happiness and excitement over sadness and depression any day.

Why is it depressing??? Better companies fail everyday. I don't want JJP to fail, they built an amazing machine, but it should have been obvious to many that they would, given the risks they took.......They jumped in head first! I am a realist, JJP is not, that makes us natural opposites.

I don't think the doors are going to shut anytime soon. The investors stopped that. But if game three doesn't go smoothly and generate cash, I can't see the investors continuing. They're smart enough to move on.
Game three needs to be the perfect balance of what's expected of a JJP game and price, with no preorder policy.

What you're trying to convey as fact is sad. Could JJP go under at some point... absolutely. To your point, Stern could too. Your same basic message was posted by many about WOZ. Everyone (eventually) got them. Same for Hobbit. Test machines in the wild... shipping soon (May ish?). Be positive!

So much hate towards JJP, sad. Unlike JPOP JJP actually shipped a game, thousands of them and is about to ship their second...JPOP also stole people's money while JJP didn't so please don't compare the two as it's disrespectful to all the hard working people at JJP.

I don't see your point other then trying to be rude by calling people that like JJP morons.

I think it's safe to say that JJP has probably done more with pinball and for pinball and brought more tangible results to the table than the people who are hating on them or rooting against them. It's not easy to start a business and maintain it, especially when you're building the entire thing from the ground up and also trying to out innovate the competition with new things that haven't been tried and tested before. I want them to succeed. I believe they will. It's difficult to launch any company and get out of the red in the first few years. Give them 5 years to get it together. That time has about come. Let's see what happens in the next 5 years. WOZ and Hobbit are incredible machines. Lawlor does not disappoint.

Can we all agree that If it wasn't for a white knight, JJP would have failed and screwed people out of their Hobbit money??? Or is this statement untrue?

This sounds like speculation to me, with no factual evidence provided to support it.

This is a great point. I think if JJP can survive after the first 3-4 pins, he'll be in for the long haul. Most of us unrealistically expected JJP to be able to build & ship pins like Stern who has 40 (?) years of experience. I know some of that was fueled by Jack...

You're spot on man, but it's no use trying to convince people of this. At this point, the white knight has appeared. They have secured financial support. The ship is afloat. For now. The big question is how will Hobbit sell. If it sells well and orders keep coming in, JJP will survive. If it doesn't sell well, things might get dicey.

The thing none of us know or can speculate is this: how far will the new leadership team go to get everything in the green? The could be willing to lose $50 Million because they see an upside of $100 Million if turns a corner. I'm just tossing out made up numbers.

It's hard to talk objectively about JJP without people claiming you're rooting against pinball and to stop. Jack's business practices were juvenile and emotionally charged. These new guys will run it like a business. Let's at least give them a chance to succeed. The past is gone. People's pain and suffering waiting for Hobbit is almost over.

If the pin is not fun, it won't have been worth it. I'm still unsure about that game. If games don't ship mid-March, prepare for all hell to break loose.

You do realize, with its current rate of production, game 4 will ship in 2022. And that's being kind. It's been 7 years now with one pin.

It's not speculation at all. People have heard from vendors who were not paid. Parts weren't made. Hence why Hobbit never started to get built. These guys brought cash in to clear up the issues and get manufacturing back on track.

JJP is privately held. We simply don't know. I know I received my WOZ as ordered and expect Hobbit as well

Let's all do this...let's just wait until Mid-March to see if Hobbit ships when they said it would and stop speculating on their finances. Deal?

This is the internet. No deal.

I'm sure that's what his goal is.

JJP will not be able to stay in business at the current rate of production. Everyone knows that. He's not trying to be a boutique.

Crack kills.

I was thinking this exact thing. Maybe the implications will be less extreme than we thought? With an original theme, no money will need to be spent on a license or royalties paid for music, images, and art.

On the other hand, I know Lawlor is known for some pretty high end stuff. I'd hate to see potential financial cutbacks slice out some neat things that he had planned.

At the end of the day though, I'm just happy that JJP exists (and of course, the other small manufacturers), creating more competition in the industry.

Don't be too shocked. He's there to turn it around, and the reason the investors want to turn it around is to increase value. And when (if) that value is increased...

Any investor is going to look at the margins and how to increase them. It is what it is.

How can you say this within moments of saying:

and:

and:

and:

And the name of your podcast thread currently states: "Stern Has No Competition"

You are speculating all over the place and then agreeing not to speculate? You even put a deadline on it for when hell will break loose.

And you too. What does that "perfect balance" need to be? You troll every JJP thread, and now you are trying to build up your straw man argument by putting expectations of "perfect balance", so please, what is that perfect balance of what's expected of a JJP game, and at what price? Speculate away for us.

You need to relax. Take a few deep breaths and come back when you can settle down. Not everything anyone says against JJP is trolling. And you certainly don't need to take things so personal. In fact, what i said was a positive. I think JJP is on the right track (assuming TH gets delivered soon).

Obviously.

Uh, u missed my point, but that's ok.

Carry on.

Boom! Smassa drops the mic and walk off the stage.

Heresay. Are there any threads on here at all where you don't try and get your digs on JJP? It's nauseating.

Having an influx of money will definitely speed the process along in this case. You still have to wonder what the real situation was. One would have to think that a new sound, successful business wouldn't be bringing on investors unless it was truly necessary.

I bought a WOZ and have a deposit on TH, so I want to see everything go well for JJP, but I still don't agree with how people get lead on in the pinball world.

Running and owning a small business is tough, and I've been doing this for the last 20+ years, so I'm speaking from experience. I've never seen an industry/business that asks the customers for an interest free loan and then we all wait to get our return with no true commitment date. This doesn't exist in the business world...I guess there's always a first.

Many people are frustrated because of all the broken promises. The optimist is preyed upon in hopes of that final produced product, but the reality is that hope shouldn't be the fuel for a business to secure a loan either.

There are no such things as white knights in the business world. A group invested into JJP because they saw potential to make money. If JJP didn't have this potential they would not have wasted their time or money.

I'm certain it is hard for Jack to give up some control of what he built but everyone should be happy that he is willing to do what is going to keep the company alive and hopefully move JJP past the start up phase and into a profitable company. This can only be seen as a positive as JJP restructures it's management team and moves forward. I'm personally looking forward to seeing people get their hobbits and seeing what JJP can do next. I'm not sure why some people are so against JJP's existence and take such childish joy in JJP's failures.

I'm hopeful it is positive but why no official announcement ? Apparently CEO since December. That title means you are calling the shots and are in complete control of the company doesn't it ?

I'm very relaxed as I wait to hear what the "perfect balance" is from you. I'm not taking your unwillingness to complete your thought at all. You had to have that perfect balance of JJP expectations and price in mind to say that, and I am very curious to hear if that is a realistic expectation or another way of setting up expectations to fail. That is what is known as a strawman argument. You were stating a mythical goal JJP should achieve at a price point that you felt was correct, and I want to know where that is so I can evaluate it as being realistic or an unobtainable pie in the sky.

And that was an excellent dig on the way out with "(assuming TH gets delivered soon)". Again, you are sticking the soon on there, just like Kaneda did to make sure it is harder to get to. Again, another start at a strawman?

Liked your earlier post, but don't agree with this one. Don't agree that you need to constrain JJP with competing on price. JJP's goal of competing on the high-end of the spectrum is their prerogative! My issue with their company/product is they aren't very good at actually producing pinball machines. Most of the community cut them slack with WOZ (since it was their first product), but The Hobbit appears to be just as painful. The other issue is reliability and longevity. I have no interest in "investing" in such an expensive machine that hasn't proven itself in terms of reliability and longevity. If JJP doesn't survive, the few pins they've produced won't be fun to maintain over the long haul.

I honestly think new ownership didn't want this to get out or they just want to stay behind the scenes.

For all of you above who are blaming JJP for "pinflation", you told JJP you were cool with their pricing when you bought WOZ and when you sent in your "prepay and hope" money for TH.

Why do you think these are the same people? Are you just lumping everyone who is not you into one pile?

I'm comfortable with the price I paid for WOZ and what was delivered for that price.

Well plastering CEO Jersey Jack Pinball on your Linked in page doesn't help if that's the case.

OK, I'll stand kind of corrected I was referring to anyone who buys a JJP pin, or sends in pre-hope money who also whines about how expensive the pins are.

Dave! Just one little button....and Pinside is instantly so much better.

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Clueless

This was an essential move - it wasn't like there was a choice. Go under or take the deal.

Anyway, hopefully some great games will now come out this year and next.

Didn't Stern bring in "investors" too and weren't they teetering on going out of business not that long ago? Or is this statement untrue?

He's part of a handful that will be spewing the same BS when Lawlor's pin is ready to start shipping too and TH has been delivered.

Absolutely rude, hateful and clueless.

Boring. I like seeing Pinside as it is written. I have 1 ignored user, and that was someone posting very annoying topics 5 times a day (they are probably gone or frozen by now). Sometimes someone who annoys me can say something insightful. Even when they are just baiting.

I freaking love pinball. Some of the people posting here have been to my house and we get along great. I don't care who made a game as long as it is good. I can disagree with JJP sometimes, and still support them like a fanboy. I can buy a brand new Stern and even though it is a much cheaper build than they used to do I can still support them. The only reason I'm not supporting Spooky is I didn't find the game that much fun... But I'm open to the prospect in the future. I can handle others who disagree.

Nope. I'm still here.

See Allied Corp./Martin Marietta/ Bendix. For an example of a takeover that blew up in Bill Agee's face, thanks to a white knight.