Palace rolls out red carpet
The Palace, a popular virtual chat software for Web, will announce a retail version of the product.
The software, will will be priced at $49.99, can be downloaded for $25, but that can be time-consuming because of its heavy graphics features. The additional price includes a handbook and artwork that consumers can load on to their computers with a CD-ROM.
Companies are turning increasingly to the retail option for selling software, particularly when it includes complex graphics, to avoid the lengthy download problem.
The product will be available nationally by October at retailers including Tech Data, Egghead Comptuers, Best Buy, Multiple Zone, and CompUSA.
"We see the retail version as a reflection of this explosive growth--making The Palace even more accesable and easy to use," said Mike Maerz, chief executive of the company, in a statement.
The Palace became an independent company in July, with Intel, Time Warner, and Softbank as lead investors. More than 300,000 people have downloaded the software.