A pre-payment plan as is get's Jack real cheap cash without having to pay the usual interest! Plus a lot of almost certain buyers who do not bail out at final stages, since majority of the cash has been paid already (Prevents also buying a Stern instead ).
On the other hand, I can't imagine someone pre-paying a WOZ / Hobbit 'standard edition' over a year or more upfront. So prepay plans work well for items which are somehow limited and buyers don't want to miss out on...
Surely there is a risk of losing money, but is there anyone who did not get the promised refund on cancellation? I don't think so, therefore the risk is only not getting your interest. But that got awarded by the $500,- early adopters discount.
So if your not interested in getting an LE version and/or prefer waiting for the endresult, than don't bother this part of JJP's business model
- Ask yourself instead: if you we're in his shoes -> What would you do?