Digital Card Central

With the release of their newest app, Topps is going back to the well of the major national sports with 2017 NHL Skate, released today on Android and iOS. Interestingly enough, this is the first sports app released without a physical license, and should catapult Topps back into the hockey hobby, something they havent been competitive in for many years.

Currently, Upper Deck owns the exclusive rights to physcial NHL cards, although as mentioned many times in the past, physical and digital are two different entities in sports licensing. Topps has done NHL in the past, but never really had a modern presence the way that Upper Deck has had for over 15 years.

With Skate, Topps ventures back into frozen waters, knowing that a vast landscape of collectors will take notice, and open up their digital apps to an international flavor, similar to what they have in Kick. With such a huge international collecting presence, Skate will need to capitalize on users both domestically and abroad. Of course, this wont be easy, and though they have major success overseas with Kick, Hockey is a completely different beast.

Since moving off Bunt to take this product, ToppsMike will be in charge of uncharted territory once again. In seeing some of the cards, I am very impressed with the look and design, and quirky sets like Hockey Hugs look to be a fun way to keep people engaged early.

I have to believe that contests will be a focus of this app, and hopefully there will be many ways to onboard new users in a way that makes the contests easy to understand. New user relations are something that many of the recent app releases have struggled with, likely because the producers are relatively new themselves. With someone like Mike at the helm, I would guess he will not waste time in putting education and onboarding at the top of the priority list.

In all reality, its clear that Topps hasnt had a good experience in launching every one of their apps, but almost all have found a niche among digital collectors. With NHL among the four major sports, this is going to be a much more visible app than we have seen with some of the other releases.

Stay tuned to @toppsNHL for more updates on the app, and news regarding the cards. Ill have more coverage as the season goes on.

With the new update now in full swing, I wanted to go through a few of the ways things have changed, as for some users it could be a change that they werent expecting. There are A LOT of things that have gotten quite a bit better with the new features, and some that are still a bit confusing.

What Works Well

First off, its fast. VERY fast. Everything loads quickly, and this goes doubly so for pulling up trade offers for users that have hundreds of thousands of cards. If you have traded on any of the Topps Digital apps as of late, things were so bogged down that it almost put your phone into a locked up state. I cant even say how difficult that made the app, and this new Bunt build seems to have solved a good portion of that challenge.

Similarly, on the card sheet, the tab based scrolling update is pretty sleek. As you slide your finger up and down the side, it highlights the section you are hovering over. As this update goes platform wide, apps like SWCT will be greatly helped by this type of change.

Another change is the way the contest screen is laid out, focusing more on the drop down menu at the top instead of tabs above the lists. I like this, as it makes for a sleeker look and better navigation.

Aesthetic changes are everywhere with improved animations and more slick graphical interfaces on regularly used parts of the app like trading. Buttons are larger and user information is much more prominent, which means that its a lot easier to participate with all the different parts of the game. Its quite cool to see the transitions between screens and new fun twists as you pull up and dismiss cards.

The addition of a loading bar that appears when the game is cycling is a big help, as there were countless times where I had no clue if the game was running or crashed. With the loading bar, the time spent waiting for the features to work is less of a question.

Lastly, in the app description, the storage footprint is supposed to be much lower with the new build, and that is music to my ears. With the previous setup, card cache storage could be in excess of a gigabyte, and that is just ridiculous. Hopefully the claims are true.

What is Still Missing

I cant even put into words how much I want the showcase in the apps. A place where users can highlight their top cards for the world to see, similar to what we had back in 2013. I have confirmation in a public forum that they are working on it, but that was almost a year ago. Something as simple as moving a person’s locked cards to the top of the sheet – regardless of year filters would be a start. Just to provide a place for people to show off their wares when traders pull up their sheet.

Trade notifications are still not in place (if the user so desires), where the app will alert a person if a trade is received. Obviously, this would need to be optional per the normal notification standards, but it would be so helpful.

In a similar vein, we still dont have a user to user chat system outside of a same card trade, and when those comments come through, a notification that someone has sent a message. Customization around notifications is key to this app, and I feel like it still isnt up to par.

Overall, I definitely like where things are going here, and hopefully we get more of these types of running improvements across all the apps.

As a physical collector, I absolutely loved Goodwin Champions, mainly because it was a fun product that had all sorts of interesting cards – both on the sports side of things and the non-sports side of things. This year’s set was especially interesting on the physical side thanks to Ben Simmons, who Upper Deck offered the first rookie cards and autographs in the product. They were selling for an absolute ton of money, and now that they are coming to e-Pack, I am seriously considering diving in pretty deep on the product. The set was just released this afternoon, and its going to generate some major buzz when people get information about the potential e-Pack exclusives that are included in the set.

Based on the releases I am seeing for Upper Deck, they are offering special Ben Simmons cards that are e-Pack exclusives. You can even get one of 25 autographed cards for putting together the 4 card Royal Red Achievement set and the Supernaturals 3D set if you are the among the first to complete the task. To get the non autographed version, you will need to collect the 3 card Mini Canvas Achievement set, which is only 50 cards printed. Definitely some amazing incentives for being on top of the release and ripping packs early on.

Goodwin could end up being a flagship type release for the non-hockey collectors that have been waiting for some new sports e-Pack content. With Michael Jordan and LeBron James as exclusive players of Upper Deck, this is the only opportunity collectors have to collect digital versions of their likeness that are also tied to physical cards. There are lots of relics and autographs to be had along the way, and I can guarantee you a big market for Ben Simmons and others who are part of the checklist.

Im also curious if the market for the Alice in Wonderland Artist Painted Booklet cards will be as strong now as it was upon release, as its clear that the cards are quite stunning. These will also be the first booklet cards available for trade in any type of digital format, and to tie them to the actual physical pieces is really cool.

Similarly interesting are the World War II autographed cards which will also be available in the release on e-Pack. These Museum Collection Signatures offer signatures from soldiers who served with the armed forces, and some have had some really amazing inscriptions based on what we saw with the physical set released a few months ago.

With the ability to transfer cards over to COMC for direct mailing or grading, its a huge deal to have access to both digital and physical versions of the print run. Just looking on eBay will show you how valuable Simmons and the other autographs are, and with digital and physical side by side, its no longer just about admiring the cards on your phone.

Ill have more information as the release goes down, but this is quite exciting to see.

Today we got the update we were waiting on, and now that the regular season is over, the real fun begins. Postseason contest play has been pretty incredible these last few years, with last year delivering some insane physical prizes that many individuals dedicated a ton of time to winning. The best part about all of this is that the playoff games are so much fun to watch, that playing along just fits with all the baseball most of us will be watching over the next month and change.

Design

The post season base is a play on the regular season cards, but I think this goes to show that its worth giving TOPPSDAN the opportunity to design the regular season stuff too. When you use the physical design, you are limited to the way that it fits with the app, and these post season cards really showcase what could be possible.

I love the stadium lights behind the team logo and the simplified boost structure really plays well with the bars on the cards. They used updated pictures for all players, just like last year, and some of them are pretty cool from celebrations and the like.

Structure

There are 5 levels of base that run from 2x to 10x on the golds. This is a bit of a nerfing of the regular season golds which are now in the middle of the pile – even more-so with how easy it is to obtain the newer cards. Its a borderline reset, which isnt necessarily a bad thing – especially with a focus of delivering all aspects of the playoff roster for each of the teams.

Here is how it breaks down:

Base – 2x
Red – 3x
Blue – 4x
Silver – 5x
Gold – 10x

The massive jump between silver and gold is a bit much to me, but it will make those cards insanely valuable. If GO Boosts come in at 12-20x, it might take things even a bit further, but right in line with what we have seen in previous years.

Strategy

The 50k jumbo packs offer A LOT of value for 50k coins, including some guaranteed gold and silver cards. It will help to get a nice clip of them in your stash as you go through things, so dont scoff at the price tag.

Contests will likely range from Fantasy style to unlimited play, so it will be helpful to get all you can of all the different main contributors for the team. Dont just go for pitchers, as with all games going on one at a time, there are plenty of opportunities to get hitters into play.

Gold should be plentiful, as they are guaranteed in Jumbo packs and the packs themselves arent too expensive. If you have the opportunity to stock up on guys that arent going to be GO boost level players, but still have a lot of points potential, that’s where you will see the biggest bump.

A word of warning, there will be people who spend millions of coins during this period of time. I know people who save coins all season just to get ready for this blitz, and they will be out in full force. If you arent going to spend or you arent going to trade like a maniac, you WILL be at a disadvantage. You need these cards to be near the top of the rankings to finish in the money, and that’s just buying cards. In all likelihood, there will be premium contests too, so its just not a free player paradise at all. If you want the goods, you have to pay.

Postseason Challenge

The main reason for going nuts is to win whatever prizes are available in the main contest that is coming. Things have ranged from your very own 1/1 of your likeness in the game, to a Mike Trout signed jersey and an iPad Pro. We havent gotten details yet, but get ready.

We also arent sure what the contests look like or the details for the contest prizes as well. There were special contest cards given out last year in addition to the physical prizes, and you will want to play in as many contests as you can just for that reason alone. Adding in the other stuff is gravy.

The details will likely be coming later today or early tomorrow, as they will need it up and running by the time the games start.

Overall, just have fun. This time is about that one last gasp of baseball before the offseason, so you might as well be involved at whatever level you can. As the game slate whittles down, the competition will increase, mainly because there are so many people watching. This is your time to shine, so dont let it slip away if you can dedicate your free moments to watching and playing along.

Last year, in advance of the release of Episode VII, we got Force Friday – something that had never been done before. It was meant to be the kickoff of all marketing related materials for the new movie, and it was a huge success for the franchise. There were lines at every toy store in the US who was getting shipments of SW gear, and SWCT got in on the fun as well. The FA premiere cards were (and still are) some of the more sought after cards from the entire run of new material, so its only natural that Topps wanted to try it again.

What to Like About New Rogue One Content

As we saw with the originals, much of the content features some great artwork used for the subjects. Publicity images for SW movies rarely disappoint, even when the movies do, and RO is no exception. I love that they are dark and artful, as I think that is the way we want to see them.

Similarly, the odds arent terrible. If you participated in the queue journey, you probably got to the upper tiers of the packs without much effort, thus giving you a better potential to pull at increased odds.

Lastly, I did actually like the queue. I think that it was an interesting way to build up to the film hitting the app, and was something I checked in frequently to try to complete. Although the top three tiers were much more difficult, I was able to make it through up to tier 2 with only about 10 bucks invested. Not bad.

What NOT to Like About New Rogue One Content

NOTE: Rogue One Premiere Cards are no longer Open Edition. This was changed overnight. I will leave my commentary below, because I still have strong feelings against the use of Open Edition as a whole.

This is where I am going to go a bit off the deep end, because I just dont get a few things. First off, these cards are all open edition at the moment. Not only is that INSANELY frustrating, but it could potentially mean a few awful things.

• The cards wont sell out and will forever be gaining in count, making them even more worthless than they should have been
• The cards will be added to 18 different variants that have more limited counts, and therefore could have more limited examples that are coming
• The cards will not retain the value that we expect a card of this type of release to carry.

Bottom line, open edition creates a negative customer experience. I cant tell if they are using this new type of set up to stretch content out so that they dont have to create new stuff or if its just a way to allow new people to collect cards from the past. Both of these things stand against the purpose of the app, and without getting into a page long discussion of why Open Edition challenges collection continuity in a way that is beyond detrimental to the core principles of the app, its not good that its being used here.

Rogue One WILL NOT have the following that Force Awakens did. It could be the best movie ever made, and it will still just be an ancillary part of the SW universe. That means that treating it this way will only contribute to a drop in value much more quickly than we would have seen had they been limited, or at the very least NOT open edition.

I think these cards were awesome, and the treatment here has made them significantly less so. There are only a few things that contribute to long term value in the app, and one of them is card count – or at least the ability to see what it is.

If Topps is A) not going to sell any of these cards out or B) not going show the counts, Im out. Although the teaser cards for FA were in packs forever, this cannot be drawn a parallel to those. We just cant do that. Teaser cards were what launched the app, and had a much more different place in the app’s positioning. They were never meant to have value. They were never meant to LAUNCH the movie the way the premiere cards did. They served as exactly what they were named – teasers.

I sincerely want Topps to think about their long term game with Rogue One here, because the way this played out is not the way we needed it to. Its time for them to start thinking about a plan to reroute and not ACTIVELY try to upset the majority of the population who despise what Open Edition has done to the app.

We are coming into week 3 of the Legends marathon, and have already seen a number of new players pop up as we have gone through the first releases of the season in other sets. Its actually been pretty legend heavy compared to last year, and that isnt a bad thing. For Huddle, the titans of the gridiron have always been held to a higher standard, and the question remains, are you on the bandwagon?

History

First, its worth mentioning that no retired player could be put on a Huddle card before last year, as the NFLPA was only for active roster participants. Because the app was only licensed by the NFLPA from 2012 to 2014, no legend could be used. Every last FOTW article talked about how much they were pining for their favorite players of years past to collect, and it just wasnt available.

Fast forward to the first season with NFL licensing, and all of a sudden, things changed. We also saw that Huddle wasnt taking the legend availability lying down either. For most of the 2015 season, the Gold Legend Marathon remained one of the top valued card sets in the entire thing, even though there were cards that ended up at a lower count.

It wasnt until the Pro Bowl that we really saw a way to acquire cards of retired players with very few coins, as it was always a high end type of setup each time Huddle delved into the pool of retired players.

Now that we are seeing the way things are going for 2016, its clear that the strategy hasnt changed. Im not complaining one bit, as these types of cards remain one of the best reasons to spend money, if you so desire. I have always said that spending should entitle you to content that just isnt available for free users, otherwise the point of spending is diluted. Legends, for the most part, are one of those perks.

Roster

The other great part of 2016, is we have seen a new partnership between Topps and the Football Greats Alliance. If you arent familiar with the way things work, you cant just put anyone on a card, as you need the rights from the player to produce anything with their likeness on it. For most retired players, this is done through group license agreements, where companies collect permissions from a group of players, and then sell those permissions as a larger license so that companies like Topps doesnt have to negotiate individually with each player. Lucky for us, Topps made a deal with one of the best football GLs out there, and that means a stacked roster for 2016.

We have already seen Montana, Payton, White and other big names make their app debut, and we are likely not even close to finished. You can google who is licensed under that alliance, and if those names are coming, I cant wait.

This actually could end up as one of the best legend years of any app that Topps makes, as its clear that they are not just going to use and abuse their new relationship in a way that reduces the fun associated with chasing players of this caliber.

Contests

A new thing this year for Huddle is the addition of legend based contest card rewards associated with the week long challenge. The gold signatures remain some of the more valuable cards in the app, and look absolutely gorgeous. We saw big names like Payton and Starr get their due in weeks 1 and 3, and I would expect more from this as the season goes on.

I think that adding them to the contest pool of prizes is a great way to reward the effort needed to place well in the week long slate of games, and its no secret that people want the cards that have already been given out. I had to lock my gold signature of Walter Payton, because blind trades were so plentiful, it was annoying. That’s a good sign.

Value

If you havent seen already, the community places quite the big price tag on many of the legend cards as well. Because Football breeds a state of nostalgia for so many people, we all tie many of the players of our youth to memories we experienced along the way. Even though not every player had a HOF career, they all mean something to the history of the team they are pictured on. Desmond Howard wasnt exactly the best Packer ever, or even in the right zip code when you compare him to Starr and other players we have seen in Huddle so far. That being said I can guarantee that everyone remembers the Super Bowl that made him famous with Green Bay after a stellar college career. That’s what these types of releases can do, and its why those cards have value above and beyond.

Expect to overpay for a legend card as compared to an active player card in the same set. Its just the way things are, especially with cost of acquisition so high for many of the releases. Right now, the Legend marathon is only eclipsed by Gold Signatures and MAYBE some of the Limited Variants, but that could change.

We saw that Montana got special treatment (rightfully so) with a Legends Fire Signature, and I doubt that is the last we see of super premium cards that are only available for the top 1% of the app.

Im very excited to see how things progress, and I am crossing my fingers that cards are on the way that pair these types of guys with newer players. As a Vikings fan, I would love to see Adrian Peterson get a card with Walter Payton, even with the injury. It would just be cool to see.

Legends have that type of clout. I think that its right they do.

Man, I love this time of year. Football is in full swing, the MLB playoffs are on the horizon, and the weather is just quite nice enough that you only need a light jacket. Its amazing. With the beginning of the postseason coming up, Bunt is about to light off a rocket that will spur the app’s focus for the rest of the season. Get ready for the playoffs, because its about to get nuts.

Prep Your Deck

Right now, if you are a points player, I hope you have already started stocking up for the playoffs. All cards that are from eliminated teams should be thought of as expendable, and the focus of your trading should all be on teams you know are going to be in the playoffs for the long haul. I have seen an uptick in equipment trading as people look to stock their lineup with higher boosted cards, especially from series 2, and that wont stop. It will only get more and more difficult to get the gear you need to upgrade, especially if you are looking for orange and above.

Its worth mentioning that playoff base cards will be better to collect in the long run, but stocking up now on playoff teams might help you avoid some of the massive costs that will likely come with ripping packs of playoff cards.

If you really want to get in on the action (a good idea if last year was any indication), start to look for the bargains that give you access to the top players on each team. This means pitchers who will likely form the rotation in the AL and NLDS, and hitters who are high average, and dont strike out a lot. Because every game is televised, every part of the active roster is important to have at your disposal.

Even those middle relievers who were forgotten during the rest of the season are now valuable, as the playoffs are like Sunday Night Baseball every time there is a game.

A word of warning – try to diversify among the wild card teams. Because they can potentially be eliminated within one game, its important to have some cards in your arsenal, but dont spend time hoarding unless you know its a deal you cant pass up. I saw someone last year get their dreams dashed because their hoard team was eliminated in the first wild card game. Ouch.

Remember, the top two types of cards are high strike out pitchers with good WHIP, and high average hitters who have power. Because there is only one game at a time, it might even be in your best interest to stock up on guys that steal a lot of bases, as you will be able to get the points and sneak ahead if you play the stats right.

Prep Your Wallet

In all likelihood, the amount of money needed to be competitive in the top bracket of the playoffs will be high. There will be premium contests you will need to play in for top point scoring to be registered, and that means you will need lots of coins unless you have already started saving.

On top of that, there will be so many cool cards released that it only adds to the wallet pain, especially if last year was any indicator. With crossover physical cards now being a big part of the way Topps does business, expect that this will be the first time the playoffs take center stage on that level. I am quite excited for that especially, as its clear that having a physical commemoration of the digital awesomeness is a cool part of the game.

Last year, we didnt really see playoff specific signatures in a way like we did in 2014, so I hope that comes back – same thing with relics and limited. I am looking for premium content along side the regular playoff boosts, and hopefully we get both.

I would expect playoff cards to range in boost from 5x-10x, if not more, but it all depends on how they approach things. I could see them going all out like they did in 2015, with almost the entire playoff lineup getting cards, but the boost is what really matters. Gold being 5x should put them right in the middle of the top cards if I was to guess, with playoff base that I could see extending quite a bit past that point.

GO Boosts will also get their due too, with higher playoff levels than we have likely seen all year long. Depending on how things go, it might be that card exchange is brought back into it, as it has limited the count on the examples from the season, and made them much more of a luxury to chase.

Prep Your Expectations

Most importantly, I hope the prizes are on the level they were last year too. The playoffs are where everyone comes back to participate, which means the effort needed to place well is that much higher. We saw huge prizes given away last year, including iPad Pros, Trout signed bats and jerseys, among other things. I can only imagine what is in store, and I hope they go upwards not backwards.

Overall, this is why we play Bunt. This is the time where the competition becomes legendary. If you can do well in the playoffs, you will earn a reputation that is worth the effort. Good luck to everyone, and please let me know if you have questions on Twitter or in the game.

Although SWCT has been working with actor autographs since the first Lando Calrissian card during the lead up to Episode VII, its getting a big more focused on two specific actors now that Boyega and Ridley have signed deals that allow their likeness to be used. There are reasons why this is pretty awesome, and also reasons to pull back on the throttle, and I wanted to detail both sides.

Why the New Signatures are Awesome

I have already stated that for the most part, the new signature relic cards are pretty great looking. They have a high end looking design and offer some top cards in the signature area. They dont really compare in cool factor to the new splatter sigs, which are literally the best I have seen in the app – period. They use a card design that is already incredible looking in its own right and add the autograph in a way that adds to the look. Im really quite impressed.

Considering that the team already scored with the movie vision signatures, and the way those look, I think that overall Im a big proponent of the way the sig designs have played out. Sigs are the main factor for Huddle and Bunt too, and its only natural they do an intense focus now that they have some sweet material to play with.

What Doesnt Work

First off, we are getting nothing but Boyega and Ridley, which are good in spurts, but not as an entire focus for the app. There are other actors they have licensing rights to that I would love to see some movie vision and signature relics for. Ray Park, for example.

I also think that per usual, variants are out of control. I would love to see them use different stills for the different signature colors, or at least different material for the relics as the variants get rarer, but I dont see any of that.

Lastly, I dont like open edition anything. Im fine with it showing me how many are in circulation – even if that is above 10k. Low card counts are nice, but you dont need to completely hide the count on a white background. Its not worth the effort to me.

Suggestions for the Future

First off, I think its clear that as more actors sign physical autograph deals, more digital signature subjects will come. If that is the case, I hope the way the actors fall together will be reflected in a positive manner.

I would really like to see more focus on sets and less focus on variants, first off. Because the actors arent REALLY signing the cards, its shouldnt be a huge deal to pump up the number of looks that any given design is given. If open edition is the future, than run off a big set so that people will chase them.

Also, its time to move away from the original signature design 100%. Start fresh and do a weekly release similar to the other apps. Instead of a box or a bundle, release coin packs with a weekly chase that is similar to a marathon. Hell, make it a marathon if necessary.

I think it would also be cool to pack out pieces of a card in packs and have people shred the pieces for the finished product. Puzzle cards were supposed to come a long time ago, and I never saw them actually used.

Live signatures are probably coming too, and I support that 100%. Would be awesome to see the tickets for personalized cards be part of the deal, but at least some cool signatures that are inscribed with nice stuff.

Overall, I think that the content for autographs in the app is still something I welcome 100%. I like the relics and signatures, but I want to see them more readily available and with more of a long term structure and plan. It just has to be done with more purpose, and I feel it can be a popular element to the app.

Based on my experience with Digital Cards, I always want to try out as many different applications as possible, as I think many have a unique take on trading cards that are different from some of the more established apps. When e-Pack was first announced, I have to admit, I was skeptical of its potential, if not only because the platform broke from what made digital so attractive in my mind.

Its clear to me now that Upper Deck was just aiming to please the crowd in a way that was more adjacent to the space than I had intially believed. They wanted to find ways to deliver both digital and physical cards at the same time, and try to marry a collecting public that seems divided over its acceptance of the new trends.

I had the chance to talk with Jason Masherah, president of Upper Deck, about e-Pack, and its potential for growth in the marketplace. After reading his responses to my questions, its pretty cool to see the direction they are going and the opportunities they see in the marketplace. Whether traditional collectors like it or not, it looks like more and more competition is entering into the digital card marketplace. If straight digital isnt really up your alley, e-Pack might be the way to go. Even more so if you collect hockey or are a fan of the physical products they have made for many years.

A big thank you to Jason for taking the time to put this together, and also to Chris and team who were a big factor in helping me get access.

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Digital Card Central: Thanks for taking the time on this, I know things are busy. In your opinion, what makes Upper Deck e-Pack™ different in your mind from existing digital platforms?

Jason Masherah: Today there are a variety of digital platforms that offer that pack opening experience to collectors, but they fail to truly connect to our hobby because the experience is totally digital. You can’t own the cards you are opening and I feel that is a big problem. You can not duplicate a game-used memorabilia card or limited-edition autograph card in the digital world. Pulling these types of cards is the biggest thrill in the industry and to deprive fans of that experience by delivering these cards only in a digital format was a big miss for me and our team.

The beauty of Upper Deck e-Pack™ is you now have the best of both worlds where you can collect and trade digital cards, but many of them have physical counterparts and there are a variety of physical achievement cards. One of the coolest things about the platform is the image you are seeing of these memorabilia card and autograph cards are actually scans. The patch you see on your card is the actual patch you will receive. If you collect several autographs of the same player, you will notice the subtle differences in the signature on the cards because those are the true images of those cards. Being able to actually take ownership of these cards is the most important aspect of what makes Upper Deck e-Pack™ (www.UpperDeckePack.com) so enticing for collectors. You can actually own the cards you’ve been engaging with on the digital platform.

DCC: I think that’s an interesting perspective, and I dont think I disagree. On that note, give us a peak behind the curtain – what are some things coming down the road that we should be excited about?

JM: I’ve always felt our entertainment releases, particularly for Marvel movies, are incredibly strong and a lot of fun to open. The biggest problem is that not every shop carries them and most fans do not know where to get them. To offer more of these releases on the Upper Deck e-Pack platform is an incredible opportunity to expose these releases to a larger audience, many who do not have a hobby shop nearby or who may not have even realized some of these cards existed. So if you are a fan of non-sports trading card releases, the Upper Deck e-Pack platform is going to offer you a LOT of options very soon.

With regard to other things we will be releasing on the Upper Deck e-Pack platform this year, I can tell you that I don’t think anyone will be able to anticipate some of the other offerings we have coming up to the platform. The truth of the matter is that Upper Deck e-Pack™ isn’t a product and it is bigger than an app; it is a very robust online marketplace. We are going to use the power of this platform to deliver experiences that have never been offered in this hobby, or many others, before. It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch.

DCC: What drew you to Check Out My Cards (COMC) and Dynamics as partners?

JM: One thing that our former owner and CEO Richard McWilliam taught me was to really focus on what Upper Deck does well which is being innovative, putting out quality products and delivering customers an authentic experience that brings them closer to what they love. He also taught me to understand and appreciate what your weaknesses are and not to be afraid to ask for help.

Upper Deck is not set up to warehouse trading cards, and scan them and ship them out to fans at the scale we knew we needed to for e-Pack to be successful. Check Out My Cards however is an established and recognized leader in that space. I had some preliminary conversations with the head of COMC; Tim Getsch about what we were looking to do. He was excited and nervous, but as we talked more, we were both confident that together we could deliver an incredible experience to our fans.

Then we looked to a partner to help us with much of the front-end experience that could also be a trusted and secure partner to ensure that the breaks are fair and accurate. We looked to partner with Dynamics Inc. who we had worked with previously on some of their credit card loyalty programs. They are innovating the banking industry and it was clear to us they would be an incredible partner in bringing the Upper Deck e-Pack platform to life, especially because their CEO Jeff Mullen is an avid card collector himself.

Bringing in these two great partners allowed us to do what we do best in producing the world’s best trading cards thus allowing them to focus on their strengths. The end result is an awesome platform and experience for collectors that will continue to evolve with exciting new functionality and offerings at www.UpperDeckePack.com.

DCC: I like that you are partnering with these types of companies, especially ones that are run by collectors themselves. Speaking of that, collectors seem to split on what digital brings to the hobby. What do you see as a challenge for the medium as a whole? What is Upper Deck doing to ensure that it won’t be an issue?

With digital trading card programs, the collector doesn’t truly own anything which is a major problem.  We recently saw this issue transpire on a massive level with the trading card game: Marvel War of Heroes. The company did not get their license renewed and the players lost the entire collections of trading cards overnight. This could happen on any of the digital only programs at any time because licenses change throughout time.

Because our products are tied to physical cards, we protect our collectors by making Upper Deck e-Pack a platform where fans could buy, trade and store their trading cards. When a collector buys a pack, box or case on e-Pack, they own those physical cards.  Should any licensing changes occur, our fans will be able to retain their collections and cards on the e-Pack platform. With other digital-only products, the collector could lose their entire collection based on a licensing change or a company’s decision to no longer support an app.

DCC: Losing a collection is something that has been brought up on twitter a few times, and I know that there are people out there concerned with that aspect – especially with how volatile the licensing market is today. Speaking of licensing, the NHL is an exclusive partner of Upper Deck, what have been their feelings on e-Pack as a delivery method of physical cards and new way to collect?

JM: I think it would be better if you heard from the NHL® on this. Here’s what Dave McCarthy, the vice-president of Consumer Products Marketing for the NHL had to say about Upper Deck e-Pack:

”We applaud Upper Deck’s vision to create this innovative new way for fans and collectors to buy, collect and trade NHL® hockey trading cards. This complimentary channel is serving the digital age consumer who is tech savvy and enjoys the thrill of opening a pack of cards in this new and exciting way.”

DCC: Upper Deck has stated that they feel hobby shops can benefit from e-Pack. I’m among the people who see this as more of a threat. Talk about how you feel hobby shops should look at the new platform.

JM: I totally understand how hobby shops can feel threatened by these digital platforms. Whenever a new initiative comes down the pipe from manufacturers in particular, especially in the digital realm, it is scary for shops. I remember when e-Bay came out and shop owners saw it as a sign of the apocalypse. In time however, many learned how to use e-Bay as a tool to help their business and to quickly realize the true value of collectibles.

The bottom line is that no company is as focused on seeing our hobby shop partners succeed like Upper Deck. I owned a hobby shop. Our Vice-President of Sales owned a hobby shop. We see and value the service they provide and their role in this industry. That being said, there is not a hobby shop in every town, especially in Canada and Europe. As I heard stories about collectors driving an hour or more to get free hockey packs on National Hockey Card Day, I realized more than ever that we need a platform like Upper Deck e-Pack to reach more fans and expose them to the hobby.

Additionally, hobby shops are not open 24-hours a day. Right now we are seeing the peak times on e-Pack are from 8:00 p.m. – 6:00 a.m. We live in a world today when consumers want something, they want it now. To meet the needs of our customers and today’s consumer landscape, it was critical to develop a platform like Upper Deck e-Pack™ and we are seeing the value in it by the high engagement rates of users.

Our goal is to primarily reach fans that do not have a hobby shop nearby with e-Pack, but to also serve as a complimentary option to fans who want to open packs of cards anytime, anywhere. If you are looking to open a few packs to decompress before bed, Upper Deck e-Pack is there. If you are on a long flight for work or pleasure, it’s awesome to be able to make trades at 20,000 feet from your Wi-Fi enabled device.

There are several things we are doing to protect our hobby shops and make them the first options for collectors to think of when it comes to purchasing Upper Deck products that are also offered on e-Pack.

• We have staggered the release date to allow hobby shops that window of having the product first for at least two weeks and oftentimes much longer.
• We are being true to pricing on the front end and charging a pulling fee on the back end to make sure shop prices are very competitive.
• There is a dealer locator on the Upper Deck e-Pack
• We have issued e-mail blasts about hobby exclusive products to this audience.
• We have shared news information about what’s new in the shop to help drive traffic there.
• We have ramped up the exclusive hobby content where in 2015-16 NHL® Ultimate Collection for example, the rookie autograph shield cards are exclusively in the physical hobby release.
• We have started a hobby shop advisory board to work with shops on options for them to share what will help them with this platform.
• We will be debuting two new programs this year that will also help shops leverage the power of Upper Deck e-Pack to drive traffic and awareness to their business.

Additionally, it is not just about what we are doing to help shops, it is about what we are NOT doing that will help them as well. Upper Deck does not advertise the e-Pack platform in any of our physical releases. We do not advertise the e-Pack platform at hobby-focused shows like the Nationals Sports Collectors Convention or the Sportcard & Memorabilia Expo. Additionally, many of our advertising efforts target areas that do not have shops nearby.

DCC: If there is one thing you want physical collectors to know about e-Pack, what would it be?

JM: I think the coolest things about Upper Deck e-Pack is that it really solves the issue of storage for your collection in many cases. To be able to store thousands of physical cards at COMC and be able to see them and show them off from your phone is really awesome. One of the biggest complaints I hear from collectors is how they just have no more room to store their collections. Upper Deck e-Pack really solves those concerns.

DCC: For those newbies out there, what suggestions would you have about getting involved with e-Pack on a beginner level? 

JM: I would recommend with just getting started opening some of the daily free packs. There are different digital packs available every day for FREE at www.UpperDeckePack.com. As you get your feet wet with that, check out the forums and make some trades. Once you get confidence in navigating the platform, you’ll be ready to make a purchase on a product you are most interested in.

One thing that really is great is how friendly many collectors are. We run a #TradingTuesdays promotion on our @UpperDeckHockey Twitter page and it’s fun to see Upper Deck e-Pack users help each other out with regard to getting items for their personal collections. The support from fans in the community is really strong.

DCC: Any parting thoughts for the readers of this post?

JM: Consumers in general are changing. We all expect to do just about everything from our computer or from our phone. The world is quickly evolving and our industry needs to evolve as well.

The biggest challenge the trading card industry faces is bringing back lapsed collectors or creating new collectors. Digital trading card products are creating new collectors but unlike what our competitors are doing, we are focused on teaching these collectors how to collect physical cards, educating them on the nuances of our hobby and then graduating them to brick and mortar only products like SP Authentic, UD Premier and The Cup.

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As mentioned above, big thanks to the e-Pack and Upper Deck team for the time spent on this interview. More content to come on e-Pack in the future, as I feel like they are poised to do some really good things in the trading card and digital card market.

With a steady diet of Star Wars movies coming over the next few years, the first non-trilogy movie will be released in December. Its an interesting prospect for SWCT, if not only because it breeds more content related material for them to use. Because it isnt a specific movie related to the sequel trilogy, im still mulling over its impact on the app.

The reason I am mulling it over mostly has to do with two things, one being the quality of the film itself. We got a lot of reports over the summer about how reshoots were needed for so much of the film, something that can foreshadow issue swith the script or the cohesiveness of the final product. Although most movies have a reshoot schedule, this one seemed like it was a lot more than the normal slate.

If the movie ends up being bad, or even just mediocre, could that mean that SWCT will feel the impact of underperforming content derived from a movie that didnt really live up to expectations?

The second piece of this has to do with the content itself, as there were some complaints that the FA content from Episode VII was just too cookie cutter. Although there were some AWESOME sets, publicity stills only go so far in building out new cards. We really didnt see relevant action content from the movie until a few months ago.

I have been talking with a number of users lately, and the prevailing question is whether or not Topps would be able to reclaim even part of the success with Rogue One that they had with FA, as its clear that the release of the first sequel trilogy movie will be on a different level than a non-trilogy story.

A similar question is whether or not the lost crowd from the days of SWCT past are gone for good, or if a new movie with compelling content to could bring some of them back. Its clear that sales strategy has clearly backfired in a lot of different ways, especially with such a huge focus of putting stuff on sale. If a great Rogue One strategy was put into place, would the app get some of that traffic to come back? Questionable.

Here is the thing. Rogue One has a strong female lead. We know how the male dominated app community responds to female characters. Its possible that the new base of characters will give a lift to the app that has been brewing for a while, and hopefully that means some new fun is on the way. Hell, if they can replicate the success of Force Friday again, all bets are off. A new Premiere set might go a long way to doing that.

Overall, strategy is the name of the game, and creating a positive user experience is almost MORE important than ever before. The new movie cant be looked at with $$$$ signs in their eyes. It has to be seen as way to bring the community back to a shell of its former self. I remain optimistic that this is still possible. Only time will tell.