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Vendor Quickstart

A vendor is a company or individual that builds and sells plugins on the Meridian marketplace. This guide covers the path from first plugin to revenue.

The Vendor Journey

Build plugin → Test locally → Submit to Community → Get usage →
Apply for Verified → Pass review → Set pricing → Earn revenue

1. Build Your Plugin

Pick your language and use the scaffold CLI:

meridian new signal --lang python --name my-analytics
cd my-analytics

Or start from the SDK directly. Follow the SDK Core Concepts and the relevant plugin guide (Signal, DGM, CCM, etc.).

2. Test Locally

Run the conformance test suite:

make test

All 64 conformance tests must pass before submission. See Conformance Tests.

3. Submit to Community Registry

The Community registry is free and open to anyone. Automated review runs conformance tests and static analysis.

Submit via the vendor dashboard or CLI:

meridian plugin submit --channel community

Community plugins are visible to all deployments that allow the community channel. There is no manual review — if conformance tests pass, you're listed.

4. Get Usage

Community plugins are the developer on-ramp. Self-serve quants and startups use them. Track adoption in the vendor dashboard:

  • Subscription count per deployment
  • Version distribution
  • Active vs deprecated versions

5. Apply for Verified Certification

When your plugin has proven value, apply for "Meridian Certified" status. Verified plugins are visible to enterprise deployments (which typically restrict to allowed_channels: ["verified"]).

See Certification Process for details.

6. Set Pricing

Verified plugins can be priced. You set the price; Meridian takes a 15-30% marketplace commission.

Model Example
Monthly subscription $5,000/mo per deployment
Per-transaction $0.01 per order
One-time license $50,000

Revenue Split

Party Share
Vendor 70-85%
Meridian 15-30%

What Meridian Provides to Vendors

  • SDK + dev environment + conformance test suite
  • Vendor dashboard (analytics, submission status, revenue)
  • Co-marketing for certified plugins (blog posts, marketplace featuring)
  • Distribution to all deployments on the platform

What Vendors Are Responsible For

  • Plugin functionality and correctness
  • Domain-specific support for their customers
  • Keeping the plugin updated for new SDK versions
  • Re-certification when SDK versions change

Next Steps

Questions about building a vendor plugin?