[heresy]

Sometimes they are promises. To customers. Who've already paid for it. :S

[zedshaw]

Ohhh, my bad, I totally forgot that people like selling things that don't exist but telling everyone else they do exist.

[pessimizer]

famous case:

http://www.itworld.com/waste-management-sues-sap-080327

"At that meeting, SAP AG executives and engineers represented that the software was a mature solution and conducted a demonstration consisting of what they represented was the actual SAP Waste and Recycling software," the complaint states. The company later discovered that the software was a "mock-up version of that software intended to deceive Waste Management," according to the complaint. SAP has admitted to this in "internal documents," the complaint states.

"From the beginning, SAP assured Waste Management that its software was an 'out-of-the-box' solution that would meet Waste Management's needs without any customization or enhancements," the statement reads. "Unfortunately, Waste Management ultimately learned that these representations were not true."

[Semiapies]

Or promises to customers for custom software. They don't pay except on acceptance, but they won't pay more than the estimate.

Of course, then you run into some of the same situations as described.

shrug

[Groxx]

I suppose the epitome of this would be pre-orders for Duke Nukem Forever?