On Monday the English portal "Threshold" published a comment about PMDG and X-Plane 11. Threshold author Ilari Kousa writes in his article that PMDG boss Robert Randazzo has to get into the pots so slowly when it comes to X-Plane. Otherwise, there would be no more room for the company at the table. Why this is nonsense and why PMDG is not dependent on X-Plane 11 you can read here in the flusinews.de comment.

For quite some time now, Robert Randazzo has been making no secret of the fact that X-Plane 11 is rather unimportant to him. So he doesn't exactly make the X-Plane community feel happy. Former customers of the company who have changed their simulator platform feel fobbed off with irrelevant information.
Three good reasons for PMDG's point of view

Especially after the current announcement of the development team to only support Prepar3D v4.4+ in the future, hopes were high for a reorientation towards X-Plane 11. Instead, Robert Randazzo announced that there was no news in this regard. He also used the derogatory term XPLANE Evangelists™. This caused outrage among X-Plane 11 users and was certainly the reason for the comment on "Threshold". There are at least three good reasons why PMDG doesn't rely on this simulator.
The Boeing 737 is the company's driving force

Ilari Kousa of "Threshold" already gives the first reason in his article. If PMDG wants to publish the Boeing 737 NG for X-Plane 11, the company has to be prepared for tough competition - from the freeware sector. After all, the Zibo-Mod for the Boeing 737-800 offers a considerable level of system depth, completely free of charge.

The add-on is certainly not on the same level as PMDG's products. Nevertheless, many users are extremely satisfied with the Zibo-737. But for Robert Randazzo this is certainly a problem, because the Boeing 737 is the company's big driving force. It is not without reason that PMDG is currently working on a third version of the popular add-on. In view of the very good freeware, however, the question arises whether a Boeing 737 from PMDG for X-Plane 11 would really be the big hit. One thing is clear: The sales figures of a conversion for Prepar3D v4 could certainly not be achieved with an equivalent version for X-Plane 11.

Therefore, a free add-on could prove to be the reason why the Alexandria-based company has shown little interest in X-Plane 11 so far. That's bitter, but not without a certain irony. After all, the X-Plane community is very proud of the fact that the commercialization of the hobby hasn't progressed that far yet.
Robert Randazzo has built up enormous market power

PMDG has been a reliable supplier of high-quality passenger aircraft in flight simulators for decades. Until recently, the company even held a quasi-monopoly. No other development studio could match PMDG when it came to airliners with system depth at study level. In the meantime this has changed, but nobody will doubt that PMDG will continue to be the big top dog on the market.

A320 Ultimate back, ToLiss A319 forward. As long as Robert Randazzo continues to rely on Prepar3D v4, customers will stay there. Who offers a serious Boeing 747-400, Boeing 747-8 or Boeing 777 for X-Plane 11? Right, nobody. So there is no software company that could seriously compete with PMDG and persuade customers to switch to X-Plane 11. After all, the development of passenger aircraft with high system depth is not only very time-consuming, but also extremely costly. These are enormous barriers to market entry that give PMDG a considerable advantage over potential competitors.

Consequently, Robert Randazzo does not have to worry that anyone could outstrip him. That's why PMDG has no reason to get a foothold in the X-Plane market as quickly as possible.
Corporate customers bring in lucrative contracts

In 2015, Robert Randazzo was forced to explain his pricing policy on Prepar3D. In a very revealing post on the Avsim forum, he explained that PMDG does not only sell its own products on the entertainment software market. Rather, the company is also active in the market for professional training programs. Depending on the requirements, the costs for a license here amount to 1,800 to 25,000 US dollars. The Enterprise product line even requires the conclusion of an annual maintenance contract.

This pricing is in direct line with the market for professional users and enterprise software. Costs for certification, licensing of intellectual property and limitation of liability in the event of damage also play a role here. In contrast to many smaller developer studios, PMDG also has enterprise customers and thus serves a completely different market than the majority of all development teams in the flight simulator scene.

Such corporate customers naturally have completely different demands on their training software than someone who runs his flight simulator as a hobby. For example, a professional user must be able to rely on the fact that his program will still function perfectly even after a version update.

That's why Prepar3D is the platform of choice here. This can also be seen in all the full-flight simulators you can visit today as a private person. Usually not X-Plane 11 runs here, but Prepar3D. Not without reason.

Even if Laminar Research has clearly professionalized itself and is certainly no longer the "tinkering booth" as it was a few years ago, the way the developer studio works differs significantly from that of a large international corporation. Austin Meyer's spontaneous, infamous changes to the flight model, for example, demonstrate why X-Plane 11 is only conditionally suitable as a platform for corporate customers.
Less unrealistic view necessary

As long as PMDG can earn a lot of money with lucrative company contracts, Robert Randazzo will hardly shoot himself in the knee and shift considerable development resources to the advantage of X-Plane 11. This point of view should urgently be given more attention in the discussion. Because I am sure that even if no virtual recreational pilot were to buy PMDG's products anymore, the company would still do good business with its corporate customers.

So if Threshold implies that PMDG needs X-Plane more than X-Plane needs PMDG, that's nonsense. After all, Robert Randazzo doesn't depend on anyone who does flight simulation for entertainment on his home computer. And certainly not from virtual pilots who rely on X-Plane 11.

Without a doubt, Laminar Research has created a wonderful simulator that also gives me a lot of pleasure. But some fans of this platform would certainly have a good face if they showed a less unrealistic view regarding their supposed weight in the community. That would also make the discussion much more objective.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator