View Full Version : How absurd!
You all appear to be internet users.
Well take a look at this...
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=19552
I don't know whether or not to believe it since it's extremely stupid. But being stupid makes it believeable since that's what people are like.
Money grabbing-
thezombiemessia
16-08-09, 10:26
Why is this absurd?
I don't see why it is so absurd to have to pay for content, considering there are people that actually have to create that content.
Sure, not all of it should be paid for...forums like this, where we discuss products that have already been bought or will possibly be purchased in the future, or places like GameTrailers that is used by Developers to advertise their products.
But Newspapers, or other news websites, and various other things, why should they not be paid for?
The Print Industry is failing at the moment, because this generation is more obssessed with getting free news, or free information, or free services, than previous generations have been.
The Print Industry will never actually die, because there will always be a need/want for a physical copy of the news (even if, in the end, it does go towards digital copies of newspapers), but it will diminish greatly (we've already seen hundreds of magazines collapse or merge, and local newspapers have gone from Dailies to Weeklys).
No, I do not find this idea to be absurd. I just think it needs to be ironed out.
It's not paying for things that bothers me, it's just the fact we'll be paying twice to use the internet. It just seems as if a tool used by millions is going to be milked. Communities will crumble and the internet as a liberty will become just another thing added to our expenses.
thezombiemessia
16-08-09, 11:33
Much like Xbox Live asks you to pay extra to play online, or WoW asks for a subscription...
Companies have been doing it for years...they want to earn money from you using their services, it's not unheard of.
But, as always, you have the choice of not using those services...
After re-reading, I realise I may have over reacted. And can think of sites and services that require extra fees to use.
thezombiemessia
16-08-09, 13:14
I'll agree that it is going to be a problem. The companies are going to have to find a fine balance between what they give us, and what they take from us.
But in the long run, we've just had it a little too good recently, essentially getting a lot of good work for next to nothing.
People want money, and if they can get it. They will.
I've heard of this, I think its insane.
Imagine paying for a google search, or viewing a YouTube video, or maybe even a Wikipedia article...
The big companies would draw an end to freedom of speech, with eyes and ears only freely used by the wealthy, the internet as we know it would officially come to a close.
So essentially, capping the internets price with pay per month packages would be pointless.
While I do understand the reason why it seems like it's only right for people have to pay for, for example, news on the internet, because when you want it on paper, you pay for that. But it works both ways. A whole lot of websites are full of advertisements and the owners of the websites get a fair amount of money from that, I am fairly sure it's a bigger amount than what they get off selling papers, because for what different reason would they have set up an online site in the first place. I am a website owner myself and have put countless hours of work into my site, but I can't imagine asking money from people to be able to view it. They just wouldn't. Because my site is aimed at the younger population, who don't have some paypal or whatever you would need to pay for such a thing. Besides, it is my own choice to put effort into my site and I have known from the beginning what it means and it is not a source of income for me. People who start websites should consider that they might not get anything like that back from it. I'd rather sell advertisements (which I don't) as it would beneficial for some company and myself. I don't think there's a need to drain people of all of their money. Internet is used by so many users daily for schoolwork and everything and without it a lot of information would not get around, for example even the xbox360 email Spike74 warned us about. We all know everyone will not start to pay for internet services, whether it's because they just refuse or just cannot afford it. Nowadays we pay for e-ve-ry-thing and I think the Internet should be one thing we can use without having to pay for it.
thezombiemessia
16-08-09, 15:13
I've heard of this, I think its insane.
Imagine paying for a google search, or viewing a YouTube video, or maybe even a Wikipedia article...
The big companies would draw an end to freedom of speech, with eyes and ears only freely used by the wealthy, the internet as we know it would officially come to a close.
So essentially, capping the internets price with pay per month packages would be pointless.
You're over-reacting a bit too much.
Youtube, Google and Wikipedia rely purely on the user-base...if people stop using it, then it no longer exists.
This is why they also rely heavily on investment and advertising.
Companies like this will never charge for their services, because their services are a creation of the people that use them.
However, something like a Newspaper, something where somebody is actually hired to write or create for this website...these places need to charge. Where else are they going to get their money from?
I think the Internet should be one thing we can use without having to pay for it.
But you DO pay for the internet. Either that, or your parents do.
Schools pay for their internet connection. As do colleges, Universities, Business's, etc, etc, etc.
The Internet isn't free as it is.
What this guy is saying, is that at some point in the future...it is to be expected that we will have to start paying for the services that we use...which isn't a new concept, considering there are already Online Newspapers that ask for Subscription Fee's, and there are programs (AVG, Xbox Live, etc) that require a Subscription to get full access to Premium content.
Nabil Mishima
16-08-09, 16:42
interesting points tzm, I enjoy reading your responses! If people pay to use those services, then wouldn't even less people use them? Correct me if I'm wrong.
thezombiemessia
16-08-09, 16:59
interesting points tzm, I enjoy reading your responses!
Thankyou.
It's something we've been covering on my Uni course, and will no doubt be covering further in my second and third years, so I've put a lot of thought into it ^_^
If people pay to use those services, then wouldn't even less people use them? Correct me if I'm wrong.
It depends on which services you're refering to.
Services like YouTube, WikiPedia, or Google (services that, as a part of their nature, rely entirely on the users to create their content) would lose their userbase immediately if they started to charge. Which is why they never will.
But services like a News Website, or websites that offer something like a Virus Scanner or some other service that actually takes the time out of somebodies life to create or maintain, these places will probably see a slight drop in user-activity at first, but will generally see an increase in traffic over time.
People have to understand that most of these sites aren't being maintained by people that are doing it as a hobby...they are being maintained by employees of the larger company.
These employees have to get their money from somewhere, and a company can't magically create a pile of cash out of nowhere.
Nabil Mishima
16-08-09, 17:01
I see your point. Thanks for educating me.