Discovery?

Saw a blog and press release re the former Statewide (but really not) MLS vendor firm, now morphed into another firm with a new name and a plan to market some iteration of the allegedly groundbreaking software nationwide. The R/D for which was paid by state association members money--ironically the members never really got a fully functional product and with the recent merger the new application may soon be history as the few MLSs using it may opt for the other vendor (which is a leader and will certainly be around in 5 years). I seem to recall that there is some royalty fee involved with proceeds coming back to state association--IF there are contracts with MLSs in the nationwide release. The exact arrangements there were never disclosed, even though the state directors voted "aye" with enthusiasm--it's that Kool Aid again.

It would be very cool if the application was finished at some point--been in development over 2 years and it's been over a year since the Fresno debacle. The Hybrid version--allowing existing MLS application and the new application to run in parallel is still a non-entity and may never see daylight, what with the availability of a strong alternative system used by the other mergee.

Meanwhile, the rest of the MLS vendor world is moving ahead, but there's more looking over the shoulder than looking ahead to glimpse a future marked by major advances in MLS technology to better accommodate the decision process that remains the hallmark of the real estate industry. Data quality and relevance to the decision process needs major upgrading, as does photo display and control. The technology is there, the will is not, largely because the users remain relatively passive players. They use what is available and complain about it all the while. Political forces control the users and ultimately the MLS vendor world.

As is usual, I'll point out that the interests of the public lie elsewhere.