Before anyone decides to flame: I am only going off the information I have seen in this thread, the referenced thread, and my own observations about the preorder section of the CL site. Below is my "humble" opinions, and is not to be construed as legal advice, etc, or anything other than personal opinions regarding the preorder process involved at CL. [Insert applicable legal fine print and disclaimers here.] ===== "Preorders will be charged in full", IMHO, does not satisfy the obligatory requirements to fully describe the policies and procedures surrounding the preorder purchase process. In fact, the statement, as quoted, is very vague in that it does not indicate: 1) What the definition of "preorder" in that context is. (It may seem obvious, but being overly descriptive can only benefit CL in the case of any "legal discussions".) CYA rings a bell. 2) Exactly who, what, where, when, why, how, and how much (intended exaggeration) the charges will show up on the credit card and any remedial actions available to the consumer(s) regarding complications that may arise during the preorder/fulfillment process. === As for the legality issue: I did a net search and could not find any specific information regarding the legality of making charges to credit cards prior to the fulfillment of the order. However, the majority of the sites listed when searching for "credit card preorder" do, in fact, state that the consumer will not be charged until such time as the product is shipped. Therefore, it would seem that the generally acceptable "best business practice" for CL would be to follow suit; unless explicit information is provided during the preorder process. === In this day and age of computerized billing systems and electronic transfers, I find it highly unlikely that any one person, or compnay for that matter, would have to call the credit card company(~ies) and individually verify each and every purchase (or pre-purchase) that has been made. If this was the case, I would not expect too many companies would even bother with the process, as it would be far too labor- and time-consuming to add that "convenience" for their customers. === Any company worth their salt does not rely upon preorder purchase transactions in order to fund the release of any product. If the company is that strapped for cash that they have to depend upon this source of income to release a product, buyers should beware. === The reference to a "special price", again IMHO, is not that special. $20 off a $349 valued software package hardly qualiies as "special pricing". That amounts to approximately a 5-6% discount; much less than "sale" prices from normal retail/wholesale outlets. In the grand scheme of things $20 in reference to $350 is hardly a dent; I pay more than that in local sales taxes for normal purchases. === Personally, I think CL saw a chance to increase its coffers by allowing a preorder of P5 and the preorder was meant to be nothing more than a "tickler" for the Poser crowd who are all excited about the release of P5. The one thing that this does offer CL is approximately 1-2 months' worth of advanced interest on the preorder purchases that they normally would not have recieved. Therefore, it is more of a give-and-take situation: They give you the option to preorder to ensure you get a copy, and they take your money early and earn more interest, etc, on it than they normallly would have received. For instance, using basic math and purely hypothetical figures: If CL gets 500 users to preorder P5 at $329, the total before taxes, etc (presuming any would be applicable) would be 500 x $329 = $16,450. Since they do not allow you to see the shipping costs associated with the order until you sign up for an account, I will presume that the shipping is $10/order, adding another $5,000 to the kitty. Therefore, in preorder cash alone, they have amassed $21,450 in revenue. If this money is placed in an interest-bearing account/investment, providing a yield of 3% per month ($643.50), this would net CL a total of $22,093.50 of extra income in one month ($22,756.31 for two, etc) that they normally would not have. Although this may not seem like much, to a company that is concerned with bookkeeping, fiscal reports, etc, it could be used to "fluff" figures for the month(s) prior to the official release or provide some needed revenue for whatever purpose it may suit them. Of course, this scenario does not include all of the financial possibilities available, simply because I am a geek and not an accountant or economist. ;0) So, you see, although preordering is a "nice gesture" by CL to the Poser community, there are benefits on both sides. Although I have nothing personal against CL, its affiliates, etc, all businesses try to make the consumer feel as if they are the center of attention and the sole benefactor of any such "generosity" on their behalf. However, companies are not in the practice of doing anything that does not offer themselves a direct benefit in the process. That is capitalism at its best.