But the point is Phil that there are multiple ways to develop and stay level with (or in front of) the crowd. There are also finite resources to achieve progress so any company has to prioritise.
Most companies do it by regularly forcing you to buy new updated products (if you want the latest features). However, the Kemper model is to support existing customers by providing free updates to them without the need to keep buying new stuff. That commitment to supporting existing users and rewarding them for their commitment and loyalty is part of what brings in new customers but ultimately the product stands or falls on what it delivers today not what you hope it might deliver someday.
It seems to me that in the Kemper camp the "product" is the quality of the sounds and whether or not the hardware is robust and reliable enough for mission critical use on the world's stages and studios. They seem to be doing that pretty well on that front. I don't (and I get the impression they don't) see things like an editor as improving the quality of the underlying product. CK and the team appear to have been prioritising their finite development budget on improvements to the quality of the units until now. They don't appear to have viewed the development of a computer editor as something that moves the product forward.
They now seem to have reached a point where they feel the underlying product is pretty damn good and feel developing new products (Stage and Kone etc) plus devoting the time and effort to providing users with an editor is a higher priority than other developments such as improving the FX or giving me direct access to Delay Mix on a dedicated expression pedal; something that to me is about 1,000 times more important than an editor but I'm in a minority so the editor is higher up the development ladder. I'm fine with that. I did my research and knew what I was buying at the time.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not against an editor. I don't have a burning need for one but I'll be glad to have the option when one comes along and might find a use for it from time to time. I know others feel more strongly about the "need' and I hope the editor does provide what they want. It will be a nice addition but hardly mission critical compared to sound quality and reliability - a nice to have rather than need to have.
Kemper also have some major issues surrounding the launch of the Stage for both hardware and software. As a company that looks after customers who have bought their products, I can fully understand if their No1 priority just now is to make sure everybody that bought a Stage has a fully functioning piece of hardware that will deliver on the expectations of customers and not let them down in demanding situations such as in the middle of a gig or recording session. That is a mission critical situation for Kemper products and until they have the teething problems from the Stage sorted out I don't think it matters how much anybody shouts about the need for an editor for a product that is working exactly as described at point of sale. I didn't buy a Stage (and probably never will as I just don't get the attraction of the form factor personally) but I would respect the company if they are currently devoting all of their efforts to making sure Stage owners have a robust glitch free piece of hardware. Customers deserve it and Kemper's reputation depends on it. Hopefully, it was just a one off bad batch and they have already identified the cause and implemented strategies to make sure it doesn't happen again .If they have then maybe the editor will arrive before the end of the summer as originally stated .