Announcement from Trappy (TBS):
In the last few days a discussion about SmartAudio has consumed a great deal of time here at TBS. We listen to this community at the core of everything we do. After long discussions with a lot of the key players we have come to the conclusion that we have made some major mistakes in the past. We'd like to take this opportunity to become fully transparent and announce some groundbreaking changes for the FPV industry that are taking effect as of immediately.
1) The TBS SmartAudio protocol will change its status from 'closed' to 'open'. The full specifications of the protocol are posted on our website for download. Anyone will be free to implement the standard, but if you are a for-profit company please read point 2!
2) We will be starting a "SmartAudio authorized" licensing programme. VTx manufacturers have the option of becoming an authorized source for VTx hardware. There is a one-time fee of $1500 per company/brand (not product). TBS will ensure that the authorization is a seal of quality, so customers are advised to purchase only authorized VTx. Brands that have qualified for this so far and are a positive member of this industry are: UBAD, FXT, Rush, Underground FPV. Please contact TBS customer support if you are interested in becoming a partner of TBS SmartAudio.
3) Future development of standards will be done in the most transparent and inclusive way possible. While establishing standards, we will allow comments from as many stakeholders as we humanly can without slowing down progress too much. Key decisions on standards are open to the public for comment, and decisions will be made by a majority vote, outside of TBS control. We welcome manufacturers that are interested in working with TBS to contact us.
That's it for the changes. Last but not least, we'd like to point out that transparency is a major risk to companies like TBS in the current environment. We are taking a bold step into an unknown future and run the danger of getting cloned out of existence with this new strategy. In fact, many of our partners have already ceased R&D due to the rampant cloning and widespread support of such products. Progress in the industry is slowly but surely coming to a grinding halt and we need to fight this trend, and everyone needs to pull in the same direction.
TBS believes that we should be the first to take such a step in order to show good faith, but it also requires others to become more responsible in how they interact with companies who do nothing but deteriorate prices at the expense of those doing R&D. Please do not abuse our good will and let's start working together towards a future that allows companies like TBS to flourish, rather than attempting to punish us for doing the right thing.
Thanks for your time and for all the positive ideas and contributions!
Perna, RiSCyD, Trappy
Source: https://www.facebook.com/teamblacksheep/...6144587642
In the last few days a discussion about SmartAudio has consumed a great deal of time here at TBS. We listen to this community at the core of everything we do. After long discussions with a lot of the key players we have come to the conclusion that we have made some major mistakes in the past. We'd like to take this opportunity to become fully transparent and announce some groundbreaking changes for the FPV industry that are taking effect as of immediately.
1) The TBS SmartAudio protocol will change its status from 'closed' to 'open'. The full specifications of the protocol are posted on our website for download. Anyone will be free to implement the standard, but if you are a for-profit company please read point 2!
2) We will be starting a "SmartAudio authorized" licensing programme. VTx manufacturers have the option of becoming an authorized source for VTx hardware. There is a one-time fee of $1500 per company/brand (not product). TBS will ensure that the authorization is a seal of quality, so customers are advised to purchase only authorized VTx. Brands that have qualified for this so far and are a positive member of this industry are: UBAD, FXT, Rush, Underground FPV. Please contact TBS customer support if you are interested in becoming a partner of TBS SmartAudio.
3) Future development of standards will be done in the most transparent and inclusive way possible. While establishing standards, we will allow comments from as many stakeholders as we humanly can without slowing down progress too much. Key decisions on standards are open to the public for comment, and decisions will be made by a majority vote, outside of TBS control. We welcome manufacturers that are interested in working with TBS to contact us.
That's it for the changes. Last but not least, we'd like to point out that transparency is a major risk to companies like TBS in the current environment. We are taking a bold step into an unknown future and run the danger of getting cloned out of existence with this new strategy. In fact, many of our partners have already ceased R&D due to the rampant cloning and widespread support of such products. Progress in the industry is slowly but surely coming to a grinding halt and we need to fight this trend, and everyone needs to pull in the same direction.
TBS believes that we should be the first to take such a step in order to show good faith, but it also requires others to become more responsible in how they interact with companies who do nothing but deteriorate prices at the expense of those doing R&D. Please do not abuse our good will and let's start working together towards a future that allows companies like TBS to flourish, rather than attempting to punish us for doing the right thing.
Thanks for your time and for all the positive ideas and contributions!
Perna, RiSCyD, Trappy
Source: https://www.facebook.com/teamblacksheep/...6144587642
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