The key approach to any pricing is to make it a perfectly stirred mix – a balance between adequate functionality limitations and coverage of development and maintenance costs. The upgrade sequence should be profitable and reasonable for any commercial user anytime they're ready to scale. But while SLA regulations might be a heavy argument if you’re running something serious, only a few take advantage of a distinct feature available at Enterprise and Ultimate plans. It’s the possibility to use private protocols (channels, or streams) and flespi engineers’ monthly hours for feature development upon your request.
A hidden pearl
What makes private protocols valuable? Private protocols allow you to offer exclusive device support that competitors simply cannot match. Unlike standard protocols available to everyone, private protocols are locked to your account only, creating a genuine technical moat around your business. Business models empowered by private protocols can follow a couple of scenarios:
Exclusive partnership model – a telematics provider partners with a hardware manufacturer to create specialized devices with unique capabilities. The protocol implementation remains private in flespi, ensuring competitors cannot easily support these devices. End customers who need these specific capabilities must come to you.
Vertical integration play – a hardware manufacturer develops devices with proprietary communication protocols. By implementing these as private protocols in flespi, they can offer complete end-to-end solutions while preventing third parties from creating competing software platforms for their hardware.
Custom modification advantage – a system integrator modifies standard hardware with custom firmware for specialized applications. Private protocols enable them to support these modified devices, creating a technical barrier that competitors cannot easily overcome.
Industry specialization strategy – a company creates industry-specific telematics solutions (agriculture, construction, etc.) using standard hardware but with custom parameters or features. Private protocols allow them to fully leverage these specialized capabilities while standard implementations miss these industry-specific features.
White-label differentiation – a platform provider offers white-label solutions to multiple clients, each with their own protocol implementation. This creates the appearance of proprietary technology for each client, helping them maintain unique market positioning.
Value beyond technology
Private protocols enable value-based pricing rather than commodity pricing. When you're the only provider who can fully support certain hardware capabilities, you can price based on the business value delivered rather than competing on technical features alone. This shifts conversations from "how much does your platform cost?" to "what unique value can you provide?"
Exclusive protocol support creates natural switching costs. Once customers have invested in hardware that only works with your solution, the cost of changing providers increases dramatically. This improves customer lifetime value and reduces churn, especially in industries where hardware represents a significant capital investment.
Private protocols allow you to create tiered offerings for different market segments. You can develop specialized solutions for enterprise clients with unique needs while maintaining standard offerings for the broader market. This multi-tier approach maximizes revenue across different customer segments.
While standard protocols can be easily replicated, private protocols protect your intellectual property and technical innovations. This is particularly valuable when you've developed novel approaches to data collection or processing that provide competitive advantages.
Exclusive protocol support creates opportunities for strategic partnerships with hardware manufacturers. These partnerships can include revenue sharing, co-marketing, or exclusive distribution arrangements that further strengthen your market position and create additional revenue streams.
Real-life scenarios
Your company partners with a manufacturer to create specialized trackers with unique monitoring capabilities. By implementing this as a private protocol in flespi, you become the exclusive provider for this hardware and the functionality it provides. Competitors can't offer compatible software, creating a complete ecosystem that locks in customers who need this specialized monitoring.
Or imagine you’re an equipment manufacturer developing proprietary telematics modules for construction site machinery. These modules report specialized parameters like bucket position, hydraulic pressure, and attachment usage. With a private protocol implementation, you maintain exclusive control over the data, allowing you to offer premium fleet optimization services that third-party solutions simply cannot provide.
A third case is if you’re a developer providing specialized solutions for hazardous materials transport that include custom hardware for monitoring container integrity and environmental conditions. The private protocol implementation ensures you remain the sole provider of a fully compliant monitoring solution in this highly regulated industry, creating significant barriers to entry for competitors.