Digital Card Central

As we found out earlier this past week, SWCT is well on its way to launching new base cards, something that has always been a big deal in the app. Not only does it give another opportunity to add a hoard character to your collection, but it is kind of a refresher for the app in a lot of different ways.

In the new cards we are finally starting to get some spoiler-ish content around the Force Awakens in base format, and that is well overdue. We are well past the point of the statute of spoileration and I am glad that we are finally getting some better content as it relates to the movie in that format.

As for the design, it hasnt changed all that much, which is something that I find to be attractive in this part of the “new look base” road map. Even though new base was released a while ago, we are still well short of the expectations that people have around rewarding hoards and that type of thing. Monuments are still not on the radar, and I know there are a lot of people that want to see what is going on there.

Its clear that the base journey hasnt yet ended, and that they now have a new crop of cards to start looking at building out variants. The issue is that with Series 3, I havent seen a lot of people that are even hungry for a long new variant journey through the colors, and that’s not even talking about paying a lot of money for the cards.

At some point, there needs to be a new tun sung around base cards and the monetization surrounding their release. Although everyone loves a new base release, its something that im not sure is the event it used to be. Bringing pay to play preview cards into the mix is a great way to get people eager for the packs to hit, but I think the law of diminishing returns is in play at a growing incidence.

Hopefully we get some fun new parts to the puzzle that we were missing, or at least a fun new way to engage with the content we are seeing in the checklist. Lightsaber Rey is a sweet addition to the base group of cards, and I really like that they are continuing to make base a big focus in the future.

I love the Topps Classic set from the pre-movie sets associated with the new movies. They were easy pulls, they were cool, and they were popular. The cards sold out in a heartbeat, and a lot of people in the app drove themselves nuts trying to get their set. Because of this, I am glad that there is another set that is here.

At the same time, im really disappointed in the way they chose to roll this out, taking away the community win format, replacing it with a packout that is much less favorable for the people who desperately want them. Instead of the packs being ready to rock from the get go, users must pull a designated card before the packs are available. Sadly, there isn’t a bundle available to skip the trouble either, so as a whole, the set just become very much unattainable to collect unless you want to trade a lot or spend a lot. Even those of us who want to spend a medium amount are going to be priced out of getting the set through the available means, and that really bums me out.

This isn’t the first time a switch like this has happened, but I think that choosing the Topps Classic program as a way to get people interested in spending a considerable amount is the wrong choice. Galactic Ships 2? All good with that being a super premium release. This was different the first time around, and I don’t think it sets the right customer experience for those that loved this set during series 1.

At some point, the community needs a legacy set to win in their chase. A set that is easy to chase, but maybe has a premium element along side the non-premium content. That’s how you keep people interested. Give them a shot at the high life, but make sure there is a less costly option so they can continue to enjoy the products. Give them a taste, and when they get hooked, they have to pay. That’s the model of addiction that made Star Wars Card Trader so much a way of life. I don’t even mean that in the negative connotation that it seems like. Im saying, that is the way freemium works. Freemium feeds on our desire to spend in bursts. Not setting the model up to get people to spend a ton from the beginning.

I love this set. I love that they are bringing it back for series 2. I rarely complain about these types of things, but the way the community sets their expectations is important when the team brings a fan favorite into play. I don’t feel like that was considered the way it should have been.

I am a big fan of the Museum Collection brand on the physical side, and was curious how or if they were going to incorporate it into Bunt. With monthly boxes being something that is now an expectation for the app, it seems like a high end product would fit right in. Lucky for us, we not only got what I was hoping for, but we got it in a way that seems to be like an extra box this month.

The cards themselves look great, and I would guess that the physical team gave quite a few images for the Bunt team to use over the waves of this set. Not only are there a bunch of awesome looking relic cards, but also some silver sigs and sig relics as well. The first wave checklist lacked a bit of star power in the big hits, but I would guess there will be quite a few big names in latter waves if the physical cards are any indication.

In my opinion, this month’s Bowman box was a bit of a dud, not in the choice of set, but in the way the set was constructed. Instead of focusing on the elements that make Bowman what it is, we got a healthy dose of cards that really didnt resonate with the app. I was hoping for rare color sigs of the top prospects like Moncada and Bregman, but neither was featured all that much. They really could have gone nuts and done something like making low numbered cards of some of the players on the checklist, much like we see with Bowman on the physical side. I think it would have done really well.

With Museum, we get a bit of a make-up, with high boosted rare versions of cards that people will definitely want. We also get some great looking, low numbered “box hits” along side. Although the signature framed cards that Museum is known for havent quite made the cut quite yet, they still could be coming.

I think that the biggest thing that these boxes have needed in a lot of ways is an understanding of the novelty that makes each set what it is. Because the digital team and the physical team still work relatively separate, you can tell that a few things get overlooked that shouldnt be overlooked. Bowman is all about low numbered autographs of the top prospects. Museum is about the framed autos. If there was more coordination, the team might get some extra direction on what elements of the product are worth focusing on.

That isnt saying that the cards we did get for Museum arent seriously cool, because they are. Im just wondering how much MORE impactful the sets could be if the bigger items from physical were also a big focus for digital.

I also want to compliment the inclusion of some major legend hits, because we need those in Bunt much more than we get them. Although the monthly Gypsy box and this both had a sampling, its rare we get legends in any other format. With some of the most iconic sports figures in American history at the disposal of the team, it would be nice to get more of a focus on those players – especially if they are done in a premium format like we see in Huddle.

Overall, these types of releases really get me excited, mainly because they have a root in my physical card collection as well. The great thing about having this type of thing in your back pocket is that it doesnt diminish the Bunt exclusive designs that TOPPSDAN does so well either. They work in great harmony as long as the format of the boxes is palatable for the crowd in Bunt. So far, I think Museum is a great example of that.

Each year, Topps puts out a minimum of 3 series of base cards for the season. Topps Series 1 and Topps Series 2 will all be important for Bunt because of the base cards they translate to in the app. Topps Update series has not been released in bunt prior, but that could always change. Here is what Series 2 means to everyone who reads this site.

More Base Cards!

Yes, there are going to be a TON more base cards coming, many of which include some of those guys we have all been waiting for. As more of the series 2 base show up on ebay you can start to get a picture of who is coming to Bunt. We already know Kenta Maeda will have a new base card from early previews, and he will not be alone. Get ready to chase all over again, because the sets are coming.

More Inserts!

Like we saw with physical series one, many of the inserts that were part of that set were part of Bunt in the early weeks. I would assume that history will repeat itself and we will see some of the new inserts in Bunt too.

More Redemptions!

With series 2 comes a new list of players that will be available in special redemption form, potentially. Although there are a list of Bunt players on the checklist for Series 2, there is no guarantee they will be available for transfer into the app. With the majority of the season still to go, I would have to believe they will be transferable, but I have not yet received confirmation yet. These will be EXTREMELY rare, likely 25 copies or less, and will be some of the biggest cards to get in the entire physical product.

Enhanced Gameplay!

Bottom line, more players means more people to play with. That means more points can be scored and hopefully more contests can be had. It all depends on how Bunt decides to roll out the cards, and hopefully it goes smoothly. There could be preview packs that are used to slow roll the release, but I am hoping everything goes all at once. That would be awesome.

Roll Out

Even though some auctions for Series 2 physical are already up, DO NOT expect the cards to be ready on release day. They could show up, unexpectedly, but Im not going to place my bet that its going to be this week or maybe even before the first of July. Bunt needs to get the material from the physical side, and add the app’s stuff to the cards, and that takes a while. Just be patient and the cards will come.

Similarly, as mentioned above, there is no guarantee that Series 2 will all be available at once. It could be rolled out that way theoretically, but its possible they might release the cards as they decide. Because there will be a lot of series 2 collectors looking to build their sets in the app, they know there is money to be made.

All in all, this is a fun time for Bunt, as anytime new base are on the horizon, things get to be exciting. Remember that series 2 will be available for the rest of the season once it hits the sheet, so dont go too nuts. Im very excited to see what happens, and I cannot wait for a series 2 chase that equals what I went through in Series 1.

When I saw that Star Wars was going to be releasing both dual and triple signature cards, I was crazy excited. Being that physical cards have had multi signed examples for a long time, bringing them to digital is natural.

Even better than that, the way the cards look is really cool, especially the set of dual signatures that all can be collected for the Maul/Boba Fett award. I think that adding content like this is really a step in the right direction in keeping people engaged, and as long as the signatures stay rare and tough to get, their values will remain high, even if the counts get up into the hundreds.

One of the main issue with the signature cards is that there are so many variants of them that the market is too diluted to support any real continuous value. Artificially creating demand with low count colors hasnt really worked all that great, and people are kind of sick of the single sig cards to the point that they are tough to trade away.

With the multi signed cards, its a completely different story, as the freshness of the idea has kept people going strong. Additionally, because there are no variants (yet), the demand is outweighing the supply by a considerable amount.

All of this is dependent on preservation of the novelty of the card, which will be sullied if they are handled in a similar manner to the single sigs, in my opinion. Although there might be a slight bump in daily revenue for the team to release a variant, the long term buying pattern of the public will change. I have a feeling that more will be lost long term if the team approaches this in the wrong way.

Because SWCT is more about the characters than the actors, save people like Ridley, Ford, Jacobs and Boyega, there is a weird connection that needs to be built to appreciate these cards. Obviously, a Finn sig card has appeal through both the character and the actor, but with guys like Boba Fett, that isnt as much the case. The cult status isnt applied to the actor, only the character.

That’s why the whole signature situation is as fragile as it is. People want to have access to cool content, and sigs are definitely that. But Im not sure that a sig of the actor behind Darth Vader means the same thing as a sig of Mike Trout, only because of what each represents to the user.

Bottom line, I really like the duals and triples, and hope we get more fun stuff like that. However, I also believe there is a lot of other factors to be considered – especially in the way users will be able to digest a bunch of releases.

A few days ago, we got a treat, one that I wasnt expecting to be honest. With the release of this year’s version of Programs, we saw that the team continue to invest in fan favorite sets that have a history with users, and it got me thinking. If programs is one of these sets that have appeal across a few years, how many others are in this same range of consideration? Just to be clear, this isnt a marathon appreciation post, because those types of releases are a given. These are the chase sets that are released on their own.

Programs

I love this set, as we all have a connection to going to games and picking up a program to commemorate our time at the event. I have programs going back to the 1987 World Series at my house, and I love that this idea was used to build a set. This version is especially cool with the retro logos and ticket stub on the side, and I think that there is a clear reason for doing this set year after year.

Stubs

So far, we have gotten two version of Stubs, plus a Drew Stubbs special edition card. In the course of 2015, this was easily one of the best sets that Bunt did, and I would be SHOCKED if it didnt make another go around for 2016 as well. Huddle tried to get it going too, but the design wasnt as successful in my opinion. The post season version of the set, with actual ticket stubs from famous playoff games was similarly awesome, and I think that combining the two in some way would be amazing.

Allen and Ginter

Although this is a physical digitization, and the cards arent as dependent on the Bunt team to get done, its a set that has been used in Bunt for a few years now. The 2016 version of Ginter hasnt yet been released on the physical side, but when it is out, I would expect that Bunt will be right there to bring it to the fans. It might be in box format this time around, but you never know.

Fire

This set was almost MADE for Bunt, and the user base absolutely adores it. We have seen some pretty awesome stuff come through with the fire name attached, and it has earned a reputation with the fans as a set worth collecting in any format. This past version just hit the sheet a few weeks ago, and the different cards still remain valuable even after the set has been done. People just cant get enough of the artwork that Tyson Beck has become synonymous with.

Opening Day

This set is always something I look forward to, mainly because it signals the beginning of the Bunt season. They are always some of the first inserts to be released, and the fact that each team usually gets one, means everyone can get in on the fun. I love that the Bunt team makes it a point to use alternate images, or this year, people who dont have base cards to play. I would guess that as long as Bunt is around, Opening day will be too.

Im sure there are others that I missed, but these literally jumped to the front of my mind. I think that these types of legacy sets are important to the app’s continuity, and its something that needs to be built around in all of Topps’ digital properties. We see that SWCT is also looking to build in a similar way with Posters and Prism, and I think that is a huge deal to promote app longevity.

Doesnt hurt that each of the sets is awesome either, just saying.

Over the last few months, Bunt has been soliciting nominations for Fan of the Week on Twitter, and much to my appreciation, there was a HUGE response from the readers here in getting my name nominated. All of those kind words resulted in being named Bunt’s Fan of the Week this week, and I cannot thank all of you enough.

If there is one thing I learned in the Topps apps, its that the people make the game what it is, almost as much as the game itself. That means that the generosity and passion that the community displays is just as important as that insert or sig.

I wanted to personally thank all of you for your congratulatory messages, and for the Bunt team on granting me this honor. They have been 100% supportive of Digital Card Central since its inception, and for someone like me, that is a big deal in continuing to be an influence over the people that read my blog.

Most importantly, I didnt start this site to be the FOTW, or even to be the recipient of all the things that my readers have given over the years. I wanted to help people get an edge in a game that isnt always easy to figure out. I wanted to make sure there was a resource out there when you search for help on Google. Although I think Topps makes great apps, onboarding new users has been something that can be a trial by fire for some people. It sure was for me.

The continued readership only solidifies that there is a need for a voice out there, and its not mine that needs to be the only one. I hope others take this as a cue to share their thoughts and be their own beacon out there for people to find.

Thank you again everyone, I cant tell you how much this means to me.

A few weeks ago, Topps launched their fifth app, second in the entertainment space. After launching four sports apps with a great amount of success, the new direction seems to be off the playing field and onto the silver screen. With a new license and entertainment license to play with, immediate comparisons were drawn to Star Wars Card Trader, and how the direction could shake out in a similar way.

For those of you who werent around from the beginning of the journey into the force, things were MUCH different. Digital was doing well, but it wasnt on the radar for a lot of people in the sports trading card world. At Topps, it still took a back seat to everything they were doing on the physical side.

When Star Wars launched, the app drew nothing but question marks from a lot of the users who were already familiar with the apps on the sports side. How could an app survive without gameplay? Would the Star Wars community embrace this platform? Can Topps make this work without a huge amount of support from the physical card sets that had yet to really take off?

Within a matter of months, all those questions would be replaced with new ones. How far can they take this? What happens when the movie hits? Can they handle the massive traffic? Will these cards continue to be worth hundreds of dollars? Frankly, it was a perfect storm. A huge collector base, all rooted on the internet, with a new movie that was decades in the making.

More importantly, the app saw a surge of traffic in the first few days, where a lot of new users unfamiliar with the digital scene joined the fray. After seeing what it was all about, a good portion of them left, to be replaced with hundreds of thousands of others who saw the tidal wave coming and got swept up. In those first few days, the flagship sets of the app launched, with cards in packs that cost close nothing to open.

When those individuals left, so did their cards. You can still see the ghosts when trying to blind trade from the main sheet. Lots of users own those initial inserts, but more often than not, they have low collection scores and very few trades.

This is one of the main reasons why the Vintage Han, or the other first week inserts for that matter, are so valuable, even to this day. Although things have dropped considerably since the set has ended, the cards remain a part of the lore of the app. So many people came to SWCT during the second and third month, none of which had the opportunity to try to acquire those cards. Demand was huge, and supply was quite limited.

Now that Walking Dead has launched, there are people who are immediately looking for what card could end up being that unicorn. Obviously, sets like Chop and Vintage have a lot of value in their first week cards, but we have yet to see any real value close to what we saw with Star Wars.

Some of that could be that the base of users is not the same size, nor the following as big in the real world. Walking Dead is sure popular, but no one is going to stand up and say its even close to what Star Wars means to the fabric of our entertainment identity in the US and abroad.

Topps will launch more apps, that is for certain, but I am looking for a way that another Vintage Han could happen. To be honest, unless Marvel comes on board, there might not be a user base large enough to support that kind of demand. Additionally, with so many eyes from the giant Topps Digital community on any new app, user attrition will be a fraction of what it was during those first few weeks of Star Wars.

Because everyone has a desire to acquire the next big thing, in some ways, that works against the proposition of value towards the greater community. With so many people looking for the Vintage Han in every app, there might not be one. What made Han so wonderful was that so few people knew what they had. That is part of the allure – extreme value in something that wasnt valuable to start.

I think its clear that Wave 1, Week 1 will always conjure memories of that golden age of Star Wars Card Trader. As someone who experienced it all first hand, it was special. It was like watching something unfold in a tremendously exciting way. However, that doesnt mean that without a Vintage Han, the TWDCT and the future apps will have any less importance to the digital community. In fact, the success of the apps despite the absence of a crazy phenomenon like what we saw with Han actually speaks volumes. It shows how far we have come in the last year and change.

As mentioned prior in all those questions I asked when SW launched, none of those were present this time around. All we wanted to know is how we could get going and get going fast. We knew that the new app would have its moments, even though it was pretty obvious that Han wouldnt be making an appearance. Ive since come to terms with the fact that it might be a one time thing. It might be that certain parts of the hobby arent meant to happen more than once. At the same time, we cant discount the extreme progress made since the original lightning strike happened. Yet, we cant keep looking to the sky expecting it to strike the same place again either.

Yesterday afternoon, we saw a format come to SWCT that has been used in Bunt and Huddle to deliver a large amount of premium content in one specific place. The are called power boxes in this format, and from my experience, if you are a character hoarder, these might be the best deal we have seen in a long time.

Structure

In the power boxes you get 15 cards, which are made up of base and a guaranteed insert. For the first time in recent memory, I found myself ripping packs because of the base setup, not the insert setup. Its pretty awesome to see that ripping a 50k coin pack will get you a great mix of Orange, Green, and Red base, with most packs giving up to 5 oranges at one clip.

Adding in that there are armory cards and the new Saber Warriors set also included, and I think this becomes a no-brainer to rip at least one if you have some coins saved up. I ripped a few looking to get set on some orange and green cards to trade for my hoard character, and ended up with some nice inserts as well.

The Gold Armory cards will be the top inserts in the box that anyone can reasonably pull, and at 50 copies, they could end up being quite valuable. Reds and purple are also included alongside the gold, limited to 2500 and 500, which is pretty cool to see.

Ripping Packs

Before you dive in on the 50k box, make sure to spend the .99 and get the reduced cost 25k pack once per day. After that, rip away. At 25k, this pack is literally a steal, and I cannot even put into words how much you get for so little.

Remember, orange and greens are quite the tough pulls in the regular packs, and to see these power boxes spit them out at a crazy clip is insane.

Using What You Get

The hyperspace variants are calling my name after ripping through these packs. With so many orange and green cards that are needed for these, its going to be really cool to see how the counts fair after these boxes get a chance to marinate.

Similarly, with the hoard rewards still unknown, stacking up on the tougher parallels is never a bad thing. These types of packs are going to be the ticket to making sure that you arent on the wrong side of the velvet rope if/when the bigger hoard prizes are released.

Insert Values

As mentioned above, the inserts are all in conjunction with the Clone Wars cartoon, something Im not wholly familiar with. That being said any insert that is given in conjunction with some great base stuff is worth the look. Dont scoff at having this extra trade bait, and use it to your advantage if you arent a cartoon type collector.

I had some success filling out poster sets and getting some needed cards for sets in return for the ones I pulled, which was really nice.

Im curious to see how the format continues to evolve in the app, because its clear that there will be some takers if the pack remains this helpful.

For a long time, the digital arena was a bit of a final frontier for a lot of people. Over the last few years we have seen companies flock to the marketplace with the hopes of taming the mass crowd that now sees digital cards as a fun past time to play alongside flying birds and striped candy. With some very strategic licenses available for purchase in these still early stages, its clear that this type of game is about to blow up.

Entertainment card apps have really taken center stage, and Quidd is the latest app that is really taking this to the next level. They are also the first to offer multiple channels on their platform, including the first ever Star Trek licensed examples available. As a huge nerd, this is my jam, and I was immediately hooked.

Mirroring the new content, it just so happens that the app’s functionality is unparalleled, with a focus on live user to user interactions, community messaging, and never before seen “serially numbered” digital card editions. As someone who collects physical trading cards, which thrives on this sort of experience, I couldnt resist diving in head first.

If you are interested in checking out the goods, the app is available for iOS now. Here is a link to get more information and download Quidd for yourself.

Luckily, I was able to chat with the co-founders of the app ­Michael Bramlage and Erich Wood, and ask them some questions on what sets Quidd apart from its competitors.

Digital Card Central: What were your main goals in building the app?

Michael Bramlage: The main goal is to really focus on the experience.

By that, we mean the experience of connecting people with the things they love. We think it’s bigger than collecting. It’s about owning a unique piece of something that is meaningful to you, and whether it is sports or entertainment, a sticker, a card, or something else, the act of owning that thing you love shouldn’t be trivial. So many apps focus on connecting us to other people, which is great. But we really want to focus on connecting us to our favorite stuff. It’s sort of like saying, “who cares if I love this movie and want to dress up in cosplay, I’m having fun.” When we formed the company a lot of folks we spoke with thought it was really silly. “That sounds like a fun business” was what they would say, which was sort of a euphemism for this is trivial or unimportant. But that only hardened us to make the most amazing product we could that shined a light on, that celebrated, and that treated with respect these relationships we have with our favorite stuff. To achieve that, we really had to walk away from what we were doing, wipe the slate entirely clean, and to stare at an empty whiteboard for about a month to get it right. And I think we’re on our way to doing that.

Erich Wood:  I agree. I’d also add that it’s about using the stuff we love to craft our identity. On most social networks, people express themselves with a stream of photos and short blurbs. We want to let people express themselves and define their identities by the things they love. Like a Star Trek shirt or a room full of Funko figures, your stuff in Quidd defines who you are and brings you together with others who feel the same.

DCC: What do you feel sets Quidd apart from the other digital card collecting apps out there?

MB: I don’t know if Quidd is a digital card collecting app. We hope, with all startup rhetoric aside, that it is something much bigger than that. We have a roadmap in our heads that will take at least half a decade to design, implement, optimize, and get right. And where that is in 3 or 5 years is a very, very different place from where we and these other apps are today.

But with a gun to my head, I’d say that at the topmost layer of the experience, we are different in our focus on having fun. I honestly think we’d endure making less money if it meant people had less fun in the app. Some apps focus on treating these objects like art. Some focus on gamification. We focus on: are people loving the experience, are they making friends, are they going deeper down the rabbit hole on their favorite content, and are they owning a unique piece of the stuff they love?

The second layer down, it has to be functionality, or translating fun into real, tangible things to do in the app. Take our obsession with real-time. We live in a world of Slack and real-time chats and live streaming video and the other collecting apps out there feel and work like email.

EW: Absolutely it’s about real-time. Also, it’s about the math behind the scenes. Pouches and packs list exactly which stickers or cards are potentially in them with precise odds displayed. Every sticker or card in Quidd is limited edition and individually serialized.

DCC: It seems as though some of the missing elements from other digital platforms are present in Quidd – live chat, in app cross trading, serially numbered cards – what was your method for developing direct responses in the app?

MB: I know I personally envisioned going to card shows in the ‘80s and tried to recreate that experience, but available on your device 24/7. It was really as simple as saying, when I was a kid I traded in real-time with my friends at recess. It all happened right then, and I had to make snap decisions. Why should trading or even communicating be slower than in real-life? If anything, this experience of collecting and owning the things you love digitally should be 10x better than in the physical world. This is why you’ll see things like real-time inventory tracking, real-time pack counters, and other bits of collecting information sprinkled throughout. It’s like taking the experience of physical collecting and ownership and enhancing significantly using all this live data that exists because it is digital.

DCC: What was one thing in Quidd that you felt was essential to make perfect for the sake of the app’s success?

MB: Trust. Individual serial numbers are truly individualized and unique. The limit on production on items stops exactly where the app says it will stop. Odds on packs are automatically calculated and cannot be fat-fingered. What you see is what you get because we’ve developed a firewall to protect against human error. There is still a lot more to do, but trust with the people that use the app is paramount.

EW: Agreed. Under the hood it’s all about the programmatic handling of the data, like print counts, editions, odds, etc.

DCC: What is one thing in Quidd you feel still needs some work, and what are you looking to do to fix that?

MB: I mean everything. We are not satisfied with really anything in the app. But back to the point of our main goals, this is related. It is meaningful to us that the experience never stops evolving. Everything must get reinvested into making the platform even better every year, quarter, month, week, and day. This isn’t about endlessly reskinning something. This is about making the guts of the thing better…constantly.

EW: So much. We are trying to start slow so we have time to get things right. The app itself needs plenty of work on bug fixes, enhancements, and new features (some of which are from user feedback). If I had to pick one, I would say collection browsing needs work. We’re working on more options and cleaner ways to find and arrange your stuff in the app.

DCC: What is the main reason that someone should download and spend time in Quidd?

MB: Like anything. Because you never know what might come next.

Outside of that, because it’s early. This isn’t even the first inning, and those in the app today will benefit greatly from being around now. Speaking of baseball, it reminds me of a situation involving the second baseman for the Kansas City Royals in 2013. But that’s all I’ll say about that.

EW: If you are familiar with digital collecting, much of Quidd will already make sense to you. But we would like to see more casual people using the app to connect with the things they love and with other likeminded people. Love or hate a particular set, debate over specifics, taunt fans of competing channels. As we grow, we would like to see the experience become more and more social.

DCC: Talk about your relationship with Star Trek, the channel I feel is your biggest potential as a universe with an absolutely enormous fan base. Was this meant to be your staple license?

EW: Star Trek is a big fish for sure, and a good anchor for upcoming channels. We are super happy to have CBS on board.

MB: We love Star Trek. Fun fact – Woody worked on probably the very first set of digital trading cards — called CyberAction cards — that featured the Star Trek license and were distributed on rectangular-shaped CD-ROMs. This was the late 1990s. They should be selling on eBay for way more than they do now! But no, we love Star Trek. We have always been fans.

DCC: Give us a peek into the future, anything you are seeing coming down the road that is game changing? (Teasers would be great here)

MB: Tune in to find out. It might not be next month or even end of this year, but you’ll want to check out Quidd, get familiar with it, build up your collections (and your friends and allegiances) for when the really good stuff starts happening.

DCC: Without answering “everyone,” who is your ideal user for Quidd?

EW: People who are super fans of things and define themselves by those things. Think Comic Con.

MB: Totally agree. Anyone who is incredibly passionate about their favorite things. We joke on our web site to the effect – what would negatively impact you more, if your aunt died or your favorite book were never written. If you love your favorite book that much that you had to pause, even just a second, before answering “my aunt!” then you’re made for Quidd.

DCC: Any closing thoughts? Something that I didn’t cover that you want to offer to the fans?

EW:  We hope that people are enjoying Quidd in these early days. We have a long way to go and we want to get there in a controlled way. User feedback is very important to us, especially “constructive” (bad) feedback that helps us improve the experience.

MB: And without too much pandering, we absolutely love what you are doing with this blog. For reasons we didn’t get into, we were in on this phenomenon on the ground floor. It’s always fun to chat with the early adopters, with the veterans, with those in the know.

DCC: Really appreciate you all taking the time to dive so deep into the app.

More information to come, set your RSS feeds to “follow” and ill have more coverage as the app continues to grow.