Chris here...
Neil, you make some very good points, my friend, and even though I'm disagreeing with you on some of the detail and/or how to deal with the issues you raise, I'm not shouting you down on the broad points you make, we are basically on the same page! :)
"blackiecats, post: 37593" said:
We can report the reveals, when available etc... I think info on where to buy and links of where to buy should not be reported on the front page of the site.
See, on paper I agree with this, but to my way of thinking there's a problem with this argument - folks come to websites like ours for information about ThunderCats. If we deliberately withhold info about where products are available to purchase, etc. (in the case of something like the statues - I don't mean stuff that's available from a multitude of retailers, like the Bandai toys), the problem is that there are other websites out there who will make that information available, and we are then driving those folks away from our site as a "one-stop" for ThunderCats news and info and driving them to other places. :(
In that respect, I can't help but feel concern that all we're doing if we start leaving out that information is cutting off the site's nose to spite its face. Yes, I want the statue companies to reciprocate in some way, and to be honest I would consider that prior to now they have been. I particularly feel that there should be reciprocation in the case of the companies who are using Mark's (and by extension our) time and knowledge to improve their products.
What I'm going to do is shoot Mark an e-mail and link him to this thread and get his thoughts on this, as he's the one who's been dealing with the statue companies. Hopefully he can shed some light or provide some insight here. :)
"blackiecats, post: 37593" said:
I do and this is the thing I want to happen the most. There is no reason to post links to a store that doesn't support us. Obviously saying the toys are up on BBTS is ok. But a direct link is a no no I think.
As a suggestion to move us forward on this, what I would like to see us do is attempt to form some sort of affiliation with one (or more) of these online toy retailers, in an attempt to generate funding for this site. I think this would be a positive move, regardless of the rights and wrongs of the BBTS links on the forums.
If we're successful in forging such a link (and I see no reason why we wouldn't be), then I personally would feel a lot more comfortable about introducing the ruling you suggest. In that scenario, it's just common sense - we've affiliated with a retailer that we want fans to use because they've supported the funding of this site somehow, and we don't want to provide links to rival retailers who aren't. So, although I disagree with you that it should be done now, if we can create some sort of affiliation, in that scenario I would completely in favour of what you suggest. :)
"blackiecats, post: 37593" said:
I have had a lot of back and forth pm's with Jordan last week, with him apologising and feeling bad about how things have turned on the forum recently (I don't think members only had resentment about the LJN employee interview, but also over the handling of the prototypes sale as well)
I basically asked him outright why he sent Wayne Daniels the pics and not this site. He basically said there is lots more to share and we can have exclusive access to the rest of the catalogue of items. I didn't bother commenting on this in my reply as all the major and exciting items are out there (pics already revealed) Mumm-Ra with different sculpted hands is cool, but not worth me getting all excited for an exclusive article.
Me and MannyC must both be Psychic! I basically told Jordan that the ship has now sailed on any worthwhile exclusive article (s) and we hope that the items fall into genuine fans/collectors hands. So yeah no more articles or front page spreads about the prototype sale.
Yeah, I pretty much agree with all of this. Did he actually give a reason why Wayne has been sent all this stuff and we haven't?
"blackiecats, post: 37593" said:
I don't mean that! I mean this:
http://www.thundercatslair.org/forums/showthread.php?t=4596
Asking for donations from members, other than for a registered charity (for example someone raising funds for Cancer Research UK etc..) should be against the rules.
I really don't think you understand the kind of person he seems to be and I'm quite shocked how blasé you are about this! :o Your basically saying it's ok to beg for money (to then likely fund buying prototypes!) and duping our own members! :eek: I'd like a Thunderwings Lion-O, maybe I should say I'm looking for donations to fund the hosting here, then I can get my Thunderwings Lion-O I want :rolleyes:
No I have no proof the whole film donations thing is a scam, but Jordan made an interesting comment at my theories:
Don't get me wrong, I said before that the guy is a tosser - I guess I have enough faith in our forum members as to whether or not they feel inclined to support something or not. I agree with you that he's probably scamming people and that makes me angry, but at the same time it's hard to prove.
As with all things, I try and look for what we can milk out of a situation before laying down the hammer, I like to weigh situations up and see if there's anything to be gained - e.g., if this guy Wayne the Wanker has any material that would benefit this site! ;)
That said, I do understand what you're saying and there's something that doesn't ring true about what he's doing here. So, if you guys want to go ahead with a rule about prohibiting fundraising drives on our forums unless it's for registered charities then that's fair enough, it would certainly help to stop probable scammers like this guy! ;)
"blackiecats, post: 37593" said:
I am self interested! This site and it's continual running is my number one priority. If we basically let everyone do as they like now, we will never be in the position to affiliate as we will not be taken seriously as folk can advertise for free when and however they like. We might need outside funding in the future if hosting fees go up! Without affiliates and if the new series is a hit, this site might become unaffordable to run :(
"MannysCollectibles, post: 37596" said:
Neil we are share your views that optimal running of the site is our number one priority. Im always inclined to have a quid pro quo arrangement when it comes to exclusive content, etc and obviously there is nothing wront with that in my eyes, however when folks disregard any previous arrangments such as Jordan providing content in exchange for pictures, etc then we really have no choice but to take front page advertising off the table. It's really Jordan's fault in leaving us out of the loop and now expecting to still get free advertising because there is still much more out there is no reason to give free front page advert. Like you said...the ship has sailed
Exclusive content for advertising is fair IMO, anything else and there should be at least some sort of financial incentive.
I think we should really look into affiliates to provide for funding....Im afraid to say it but we have been pretty laxed about the whole thing. There is a new series just around the corner and we will be getting hit with an avalanche of new visitors which will cause our hosting fees to go up. Guys I dont think we know just yet what will hit us over the next few months, and surely I dont want to find one day that the site is down because we dont have enough bandwidth.
This is serious folks and we should get the ball rolling on some sort of affiliate partners
I agree with all of this, particularly what you say about affiliates - even though it's not really what this site is about, I've long been concerned about what would happen if the bandwidth for this site hit the roof and our hosting bills escalated beyond what we're able to pay, with the new series it's a legitimate concern. :(
So, I'd like to see us take a proactive stance on seeking out folks (such as online toy retailers stocking the new Bandai toys) to affiliate with, as this would resolve two issues in one swoop - 1) it would (hopefully) provide this site with some funding, and 2) in that scenario I would be completely behind Neil's desire to remove non-affiliate links (such as BBTS - assuming they don't affiliate with us!) from the forums. :)
...All of that said, I have no idea how the hell we'd go about doing that, LOL! ;) Again, this is something I'd welcome Mark's input on, as he beats me hands down when it comes to matters like this. Like I say, I'll shoot him an e-mail and hopefully he'll be able to pop by and provide some insight. :)
Take care... :)
