Pay to take part in a forum??

[Brian's Bride]

So I was on babynames.com and was surprised to see they charge $1.67/month to take part in their forums. What's up with that? I know it's not a lot of money, but I still don't get it... Thank you OW for letting me post my comments for free! :)

[brendalin]

That would suck if you had to pay to post!!!

I guess I take this site for granted! I don't know if I would have any hair left if it wasn't for all of you!

[SerendipityCrafts]

I know of two other wedding forums that charge. I can't say for sure but I believe it's their way of cutting down on the spammers.

[Jenna5366]

I'm a part of a forum that has a yearly subscription fee of $25. I have a lot of friends on there, though, and it's kind of a 3-in-1 site. A site for parenting, a site for weddings (which is really slow), and a site for anything else. Elizabeth knows which one I'm talking about, I'm sure. :D

[Danielle9608]

I used to take part on a forum that had a one time fee of $25. Again like Elizabeth said I think it was to keep out the spammers and trolls.

[neebelung]

So I was on babynames.com and was surprised to see they charge $1.67/month to take part in their forums. What's up with that? I know it's not a lot of money, but I still don't get it... Thank you OW for letting me post my comments for free! :)
A lot of forums charge, or charge for premium sections/permissions on the board.

You have to keep in mind it costs MONEY to keep these things running... the hosting, the bandwidth, the software, and (depending on the size of the site) the staffing. Many sites can pay for this by having advertisements, but that doesn't always cover the full cost of running a forum (especially if it's big/busy - bandwidth costs $$$$$!! :) )

We are lucky here that not only are we not charged for membership, but that there's not even ads on our posts anymore, but just don't be too hard on the other site for having to charge a teensy weensy fee in order to stay running. :)

[SerendipityCrafts]

Elizabeth knows which one I'm talking about, I'm sure. :D

Yep :) Vendors like me pay even more :(

[Jacobs_Girl]

I pay a $35 annual fee for one of my forums and it gives us access to the "premium" section of the board, where most of the guys post porn videos and free downloads for programs.

Its also pretty helpful because the vendors give the "premium" members discount for parts and stuff. I like the idea and keeps the trolls out!

[Nekochanpurr]

Honestly.. i would never pay to talk in a forum. Then again, i'm cheap. :D

[Brian's Bride]

I'm not really familiar with any forums besides this one, so I thought this one was the "norm." Again, I don't think $1.67/month is horrible, just that I was surprised. Remember when we used to get paid to post on OW??! :)

[Whitewater]

We don't anymore? Dang. Oh well, I'm sure I'll miss my .60 a month, but I'm a big girl and I can cope :) :)

To stay on topic, though -- I prefer free forums, rather than pay forums. I can't help but think that the pay-to-post sites are making money hand over fist, and where is all that money going, anyway? I'd like to know what I'm supporting.


Whitewater

[Jenna5366]

We don't anymore? Dang. Oh well, I'm sure I'll miss my .60 a month, but I'm a big girl and I can cope :) :)

To stay on topic, though -- I prefer free forums, rather than pay forums. I can't help but think that the pay-to-post sites are making money hand over fist, and where is all that money going, anyway? I'd like to know what I'm supporting.


Whitewater

I'm actually friends with the owners of the site I was referring to - so I speak ONLY about this particular one - but they don't make a cent off their forum. The membership fee pays for their servers, upgrades and bandwidth. The forum is their hobby, and any money made goes right back into the forum. :)

[neebelung]

To stay on topic, though -- I prefer free forums, rather than pay forums. I can't help but think that the pay-to-post sites are making money hand over fist, and where is all that money going, anyway? I'd like to know what I'm supporting.


I promise you, they're not. Go ahead and look into the cost of domain names, registering them, hosting, buying Vbullein software, BANDWIDTH (this is the biggie)... Forums are typically a labor of love, and the only way someone typically makes any money (and it's not a lot) is if they get big enough/have enough traffic that a bigger corporation wants to BUY them.

And in truth, I don't care if a site owner makes a little bit of money off membership (though I've yet to see that happen). Afterall, as much time as we spend (here), they're providing us with entertainment and information -- so what's so wrong with them makin a buck for their time and effort?

[Brian's Bride]

I'm actually friends with the owners of the site I was referring to - so I speak ONLY about this particular one - but they don't make a cent off their forum. The membership fee pays for their servers, upgrades and bandwidth. The forum is their hobby, and any money made goes right back into the forum. :)

So what is the name of this mysterious forum that remains nameless? :) I'm just curious, thanks!

[Nekochanpurr]

I'm actually friends with the owners of the site I was referring to - so I speak ONLY about this particular one - but they don't make a cent off their forum. The membership fee pays for their servers, upgrades and bandwidth. The forum is their hobby, and any money made goes right back into the forum. :)


I guess thats where i don't get it.. If you can't afford your hobby, why would you ask others to pay for it for you? To each their own, i guess...

[Whitewater]

I promise you, they're not. Go ahead and look into the cost of domain names, registering them, hosting, buying Vbullein software, BANDWIDTH (this is the biggie)... Forums are typically a labor of love, and the only way someone typically makes any money (and it's not a lot) is if they get big enough/have enough traffic that a bigger corporation wants to BUY them.

And in truth, I don't care if a site owner makes a little bit of money off membership (though I've yet to see that happen). Afterall, as much time as we spend (here), they're providing us with entertainment and information -- so what's so wrong with them makin a buck for their time and effort?

Actually, neeblung, I host my own forum and in the past had three websites up and running simultaneously, for which I paid for the domain names, bandwidth, server space, etc etc (and maintained, including content) and I know whereof I speak when it comes to this kind of stuff, because I've had and have first hand experience.

Currently I only have my wedding website up and all of that is being donated, very generously, by one of my friends. Very shortly, probably, I'll put my paranormal research site back up and perhaps my professional website . . . .so (though I don't know about that one, as I'm going through a career change) I know all about what it takes to run a forum as an administrator.

The forums I have in mind are the ones that charge $45.99/month/user and have mostly to do with 'adult' interests . . . . they're the ones with thousands of members and come on, you can't tell me that it costs $500,000 a year for server space and bandwidth. That number, by the way, is $46/month/user at 1000 users, a very conservative guesstimate of how many people pay to use those sites.

They're making a gross profit in a very dubious manner. It's like trying to compare apples and oranges. I'm not talking about forums like the TAPS ghost hunting forum, which doesn't charge and also has thousands of users (they probably ought to, but they don't), or forums like this one which is also a small -- relatively speaking -- niche market.

I'm talking about the big huge ones. Not the small ones I run, or anybody else I know -- or the hobbyists that I suspect you're talking about. If a hobbyist can make some bucks, fine. But the big major forums that are pulling in millions, and that usually exploit women and sex, those I have an issue with.


Whitewater

[Whitewater]

I guess thats where i don't get it.. If you can't afford your hobby, why would you ask others to pay for it for you? To each their own, i guess...


I don't get it either. A hobby forum is unlikely to get so many users that their host starts charging them an arm and a leg for bandwidth use. My own websites used to get hundreds of hits a day and my host never charged me a penny, because I was well within the bandwidth 'range' that I paid for on that particular plan. It was only $3/month anyway . . . . . really not an issue, even if they did make me pay for a year in advance!

It would have taken 1000's of users -- and a forum that was active like this one -- for my host to start charging me, or suggest to me that I upgrade to a plan that provided more bandwidth.

$3/month for a hobby website/forum doesn't seem excessive to me at all. That's only about .10/day -- and I find more than that doing the laundry!


Whitewater

[WebLady]

Yeah, some forums make you pay; I am on one that limits most of the common features and makes you pay for a "premium" membership to get full access. Even though it is not usually alot of money, I would rather not have to pay to be a part of a forum community.

I have no problems donating to help support the community if I enjoy it and spend alot of time there, but I don't like the idea of being forced to support like that.

[snu]

I'm actually friends with the owners of the site I was referring to - so I speak ONLY about this particular one - but they don't make a cent off their forum. The membership fee pays for their servers, upgrades and bandwidth. The forum is their hobby, and any money made goes right back into the forum. :)



I'm a member of the same site as Jen. :) I've been there the better part of 6 years, and have developed some awesome friendships (some girls live in my area, so we get together on occasion, too)

[KMS]

LOL Yep I did pay for my topper with OW money. I had been here for nearly a year and posted like a mad woman. :D

I don't think that I would ever pay for membership because I wouldn't really know if I liked the forum yet. I probably wouldn't have joined up on OW if I would have had to pay and look at what I would have missed!!

[Rainbow Brite]

I have no problems donating to help support the community if I enjoy it and spend alot of time there, but I don't like the idea of being forced to support like that.Yeah, one of the forums I'm on accepted donations, and gave you perks depending on how much $$ you gave. The tier I donated to gave me a colored username, larger avatar and a larger PM mailbox. I thought it was a great idea :) But there aren't many forums I would pay to participate in.

[Jenna5366]

I guess thats where i don't get it.. If you can't afford your hobby, why would you ask others to pay for it for you? To each their own, i guess...

It started out as a small site with a few hundred members, and it was free. Word got around fast, more people joined, and the owners had two choices - shut it down or make it a pay site. Most people on the site opted to pay and still be able to use it.


It just grew way faster/bigger than they had expected. :)

[Jenna5366]

I don't think that I would ever pay for membership because I wouldn't really know if I liked the forum yet. I probably wouldn't have joined up on OW if I would have had to pay and look at what I would have missed!!

Hmm... I guess I was lucky in that aspect, as I was a member before the pay thing started up.

[Nekochanpurr]

If that were the case though.. i think my first option would be donation... =/ Sorry, maybe just me.. Its way too close to stuff that happened in the sims community and people charging for custom content..

[Jenna5366]

So what is the name of this mysterious forum that remains nameless? :) I'm just curious, thanks!

I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post names of other forums here... Can I?

Sorry for the serial posting!! :D

[mitch]

I'm Admin on our Friends Tribute Band Forum. We don't pay for servers or anything. We do get a row of Adverts on the top of the page. But they don't have any pop-ups.
It's only a small site due to being a UK based Band and only a handful of Amercan / Canadian / Australian Members who have been fortunate to see the Band Live on Stage at AC/DC Conventions. (And also stayed in our house as Friends). The rest of the Members are made up from people in the UK. Most of which we also know personally.