LDS's going out of business very soon - help them out!

You may or may not know, the story may have changed around a little, but it comes down to this. PADI will soon be or if they havent already, offering divers to do their open water course online!

This means dive shops who are already suffering from online gear sales will be loosing half of their other source of income, teaching open water classes. Instructors, instead of making 100 bucks, will be making 50 bucks, because they will now be just doing the pool and open water dives, instead of classroom work, causing them to quit or move on. This will hurt local dive shops BIG TIME, with PADI even admitting the future losses.

We have noticed dive sites such as divebuddy.com helping dive shops out, and thank them for that.

In our new interactive online mag, we will have a shop check section which will be dedicated to feature a couple dive shops around the world in each mag. Thus giving viewers around 20% off all gear ( or a even better deal ) for shopping at the store.

If you want to submit your local dive shop for this opportunity, to prepare for the near future results of PADI, keeping the local diving scene alive, please let us know and we will contact them. We will only choose the most interested. The first issue of the online mag is estimated to see over 100,000 + unique views in the first 3 months since its free, unique design, fast download, interactive and FUN. Get your shop signed up and lets promote actual pleasure diving.

PADI has noted, it has now become survival of the fittest, if it means taking most of their loyal dive shops and instructors out of business, then so be it. Lets not let them do it without a fight if you will.

I don't see why the dive shops are only going to get $50 instead of $100 for the actual dive portion of the training (I know the numbers are just for illustration purposes). Many LDSs that I know charge almost as much for referral dives as they do for OW training and for a lot less work, because all the class work is already done. So now all their dive training will just be referral dives and they will drive the cost of that to whatever they choose. So I would see those dives increasing in price.

Generally speaking dive shops don't make a lot of money from scuba course fees.....I like all the doom and gloom it gets entertaining, this is kind of like the "The world will be out of Helium in 3 weeks" posts.

If there is a demand they stay, if there isn't they don't...that is what capitalism and supply and demand are all about. What about the other agencies that are already offering online courses ??? (I am not advocating them by the way)...

By the way don't get me wrong...I am not a fan of the bare minimum courses offered now...nor am I advocating the 3-day wonder or online courses for that matter.

It is my understanding that PADI will only be offering the academic portion of OW on-line. There will still be a required confined water component as well as the open water dives - both of these will be conducted by the LDS. I don't see this as a big deal for the typical lds.

I hear in the rumor mill that padi will have a virtual "pool" session and a virtual "OW" dives.

You need at least a Pentium 6 Triple processor to run the virtual mask, virtual BC, and the virtual fins.

After successful completion, you can be certified to dive to 60 ft in a virtual ocean.... I am sure the day will come. I mean, they are already training pilots in virtual cockpits.... And race car drivers in virtual simulators...

My gut feeling is, if PADI priced it right, and get 30000 folks hooked on scuba, then at least 10000 will sign on for the pool sessions, and another 5000 will go on to complete OW.

If anything, it will generate sales and income for LDS's.

fisherdvm:

I hear in the rumor mill that padi will have a virtual "pool" session and virtual "OW" dives.

You need at least a Pentium 6 Triple processor to run the virtual mask, virtual BC, and the virtual fins.

After successful completion, you can be certified to dive to 60 ft in a virtual ocean.... I am sure the day will come. I mean, they are already training pilots in virtual cockpits.... And race car drivers in virtual simulators...

Click to expand...

Yep, it's called Second Life...

fisherdvm:

I hear in the rumor mill that padi will have a virtual "pool" session and a virtual "OW" dives.

You need at least a Pentium 6 Triple processor to run the virtual mask, virtual BC, and the virtual fins.

After successful completion, you can be certified to dive to 60 ft in a virtual ocean.... I am sure the day will come. I mean, they are already training pilots in virtual cockpits.... And race car drivers in virtual simulators...

Click to expand...

maybe that should be the future, virtual instructors to boot.

Has anyone verified this? This seems to be a dangerous way to certifiy divers? Will they have to register with a LDS in order to do the "online cert"?

I work at an inland LDS and do not see how the PADI change will take out a shop. While we do not get nearly the same rate as costal stores for referrals, typically $35 a day per student, the bulk of the business is equipment and air. We do have to have courses going, they are the key to building new customers. I can see it hurting diving by going on-line with the classroom portion, I do not believe that you will have the same level of proficiency coming out of a computer version as a real-life version. Our classroom sessions are not just read the book, watch the video, take the quiz; they consist of hands on work with equipment and tables. In addition you get to know your students and they get to know you. This is an important of the learning process, building trust with your instructor. Getting a group of students cold into a pool session does not seem like a great idea. I will have to experience a group of eStudents before I can make a solid call on the program, but as a concept it seems like a bad idea. My classroom experience built diving relationships that I still have today, it was a total experience.
:monkeydan