# How many paying subscribers does this board currently have? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 22, 2005, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167 "2005-08-22T20:36:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2005, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/1 "2005-08-22T20:36:24Z")
How many paying subscribers does this board currently have? And what is the average amount that they are paying. (For those reading unaware, when this board first started charging they offered all existing users a half-off discount from the regular rate. Thus many posting here are paying less than $15 a year.) I’m trying to figure out the monthly subscription revenue this board brings in. This would set an upper limit on server and bandwidth costs this site could pay, as from what I understand the Reader has no desire at all to subsidize his site. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2005, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/2 "2005-08-22T21:20:21Z")
As of Monday, August 22, 5:23 p.m. eastern daylight time: 3,473 current subscribers 1,468 expired subscriptions 4,941 total As to who paid what, I couldn’t begin to tell you; that’s not my department. I have asked for those who do know to comment. your humble TubaDiva ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2005, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/3 "2005-08-23T18:00:27Z")
I referred this matter to Jerry, who sent it up the pipeline to Reader management. Jerry also reminds me that the Reader is a privately held company and does not as a rule publicly issue any financial information. your humble TubaDiva ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/4 "2005-08-24T19:54:18Z")
Just for funsies, can you break those numbers down into regular members and charter members? ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/5 "2005-08-24T20:17:14Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > As to who paid what, I couldn’t begin to tell you; that’s not my department. **Lord Ashtar** , I think she’s saying she doesn’t have access to how many payed charter and how many didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![squeekster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/779978/32.png) [@squeekster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeekster)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/6 "2005-08-24T20:26:39Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > Jerry also reminds me that the Reader is a privately held company and does not as a rule publicly issue any financial information. I, for one, can appreciate that they wouldn’t publicly issue financial information, especially on a message board. But, by the same token, it would be kind of nice to know what we are getting for our $15. Somehow, I just can’t see this: > [@](#): > > ``` > * Posting privileges for one year > * The title under your name says "Member." > * Post count (i.e., number of messages you've posted to date appears with your username) > * Ability to search the massive SDMB message database > * Ability to view member profiles > * Biographical info included with each post (optional) > * Other cool stuff that we throw in later, possibly including private messaging, SDMB calendar, custom signatures, and "who's online" feature > > ``` actually costing $15 to implement, considering that a number of the things listed across the top (member list and calendar to name a couple) are disabled. Please don’t get me wrong. I don’t have a problem paying a fee to post on this board. But if a portion of the fee is going to go to support the operation of the Chicago Reader rather than the operation of this board, it would be nice to know about it, that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/7 "2005-08-24T20:41:20Z")
> [@squeekster](#): > > Please don’t get me wrong. I don’t have a problem paying a fee to post on this board. But if a portion of the fee is going to go to support the operation of the Chicago Reader rather than the operation of this board, it would be nice to know about it, that’s all. I don’t see the expense of Jerry’s time spent maintaining this board in your breakdown. ---
**Author:** ![squeekster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/779978/32.png) [@squeekster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squeekster)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/8 "2005-08-24T21:13:58Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > I don’t see the expense of Jerry’s time spent maintaining this board in your breakdown. What breakdown? The list I posted is just a copy and paste from the link at the top of the page labeled “Subscribe”. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/9 "2005-08-24T21:19:43Z")
> [@squeekster](#): > > I, for one, can appreciate that they wouldn’t publicly issue financial information, especially on a message board. But, by the same token, it would be kind of nice to know what we are getting for our $15. Somehow, I just can’t see this: > > actually costing $15 to implement, considering that a number of the things listed across the top (member list and calendar to name a couple) are disabled. > > Please don’t get me wrong. I don’t have a problem paying a fee to post on this board. But if a portion of the fee is going to go to support the operation of the Chicago Reader rather than the operation of this board, it would be nice to know about it, that’s all. Ed can answer your first question: From: [The SDMB is switching to subscriptions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=253315) What does a subscription get me? Posting privileges for one year. The title under your name says “charter member.” Post count (i.e., number of messages you’ve posted to date appears with your username) Ability to search the massive SDMB message database Ability to view member profiles Biographical info included with each post (optional) Other cool stuff that we throw in later, possibly including private messaging, SDMB calendar, custom signatures, and “who’s online” feature. (This list edited by EZ 3/19/04.) As to what the Reader is doing with whatever money they get from the denizens of the Dope, I would imagine it goes towards what they’re paying the server company so we can be here in the first place. If there is actually enough for a profit, that’s all to the good; we cost the Reader in excess of 120K before subscriptions came along and we have coasted on their goodwill for a long time. I hope you don’t have illusions that the SDMB is bigger than the Reader; not only does the tail not wag the dog, in the true picture of things, we’re not even a flea on the tail of the dog that is the Chicago Reader. If your worldview sees it differently, you better adjust your reality, it’s way out of alignment. your humble TubaDiva ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/10 "2005-08-24T22:04:32Z")
> [@squeekster](#): > > What breakdown? The list I posted is just a copy and paste from the link at the top of the page labeled “Subscribe”. They way you worded your response, it appeared you were trying to attach a cost of implementation to each benefit. I just wanted you to include Jerry’s time, as well. ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/11 "2005-08-24T22:19:03Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > As to what the Reader is doing with whatever money they get from the denizens of the Dope, I would imagine it goes towards what they’re paying the server company so we can be here in the first place. If there is actually enough for a profit, that’s all to the good; we cost the Reader in excess of 120K before subscriptions came along and we have coasted on their goodwill for a long time. This makes no sense at all. I actually know what it costs to host these boards. $200 a month should be adequate for a dedicated server. Jerry gets a paycheck of over $100,000 a year??? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/12 "2005-08-24T22:31:48Z")
> [@rfgdxm](#): > > This makes no sense at all. I actually know what it costs to host these boards. $200 a month should be adequate for a dedicated server. Jerry gets a paycheck of over $100,000 a year??? I don’t believe you do, or else you are calling **Tuba** a liar when she says the Reader had spent $120,000 on these boards in the 4 years prior to going subscription. Which is it? ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/13 "2005-08-24T22:45:53Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > I don’t believe you do, or else you are calling **Tuba** a liar when she says the Reader had spent $120,000 on these boards in the 4 years prior to going subscription. Which is it? Hmm…I may have misread Tuba’s post. Did she mean $120,000 a year, or $120,000 over 4 years prior to going subscription? Note that my post was based on the interpretation that it was $120,000 a year; if Jerry was making $100,000 a year, his wages alone would be $400,000 in costs over 4 years, plus what it cost to run the server. > **[speed of these boards](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=330324)** > > I’m considering paying the subscription for this place but one thing is putting me off - the speed of the board. It seems to jam up frequently which is highly frustrating. Is anything being done to fix this problem? In that thread I figured a ballpark estimate of around $35K a year in subscription fees. If Jerry is making around $30,000 a year running these boards, then they are near breaking even financially. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/14 "2005-08-24T22:51:57Z")
I read **Tuba** ’s post as saying that we cost the Reader 120k total before subscriptions started. In which case, it sounds like our subscriptions are being treated as some kind of backpayment for the previous period…and if so, we were seriously misled. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/15 "2005-08-24T23:19:18Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > I read **Tuba** ’s post as saying that we cost the Reader 120k total before subscriptions started. In which case, it sounds like our subscriptions are being treated as some kind of backpayment for the previous period…and if so, we were seriously misled. How so? If the Reader spent $30k per year before subscriptions, doesn’t it stand to reason that they are spending at least that much now? And if so, where is all this extra cash is coming from. Honestly, this is about the third time I’ve seen this kind of carping, as though you are being ripped off for 75¢ a month, and _by God_ you’re going to get to the bottom of it! And even if these boards _do_ produce a profit, why is that some kind of egregious fraud? _So What?!?!?_ ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/16 "2005-08-24T23:54:48Z")
> [@USCDiver](#): > > **Lord Ashtar** , I think she’s saying she doesn’t have access to how many payed charter and how many didn’t. I know she said she didn’t know how much each person paid. But I thought she might be able to tell who has Charter Member status and who does not. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/17 "2005-08-25T01:04:19Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > Honestly, this is about the third time I’ve seen this kind of carping, as though you are being ripped off for 75¢ a month, and _by God_ you’re going to get to the bottom of it! And even if these boards _do_ produce a profit, why is that some kind of egregious fraud? _So What?!?!?_ I agree with this entirely. Whether the Reader makes a profit off the board (which is doubtful) is irrelevant to me. The only thing that I have to know is whether my subscription fee is worth it to me. It is. ---
**Author:** ![askeptic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@askeptic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/askeptic)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/18 "2005-08-25T01:11:12Z")
> [@This Year's Model](#): > > I agree with this entirely. Whether the Reader makes a profit off the board (which is doubtful) is irrelevant to me. The only thing that I have to know is whether my subscription fee is worth it to me. It is. I also agree. I just hope they are doing something kinky with all that money… ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/19 "2005-08-25T01:14:38Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > How so? If the Reader spent $30k per year before subscriptions, doesn’t it stand to reason that they are spending at least that much now? And if so, where is all this extra cash is coming from. > > Honestly, this is about the third time I’ve seen this kind of carping, as though you are being ripped off for 75¢ a month, and _by God_ you’re going to get to the bottom of it! And even if these boards _do_ produce a profit, why is that some kind of egregious fraud? _So What?!?!?_ Go back to the original explanation for subscriptions, which **Tuba** linked to earlier. No mention is made anywhere of the Reader. It’s all about the SDMB. I’m not the only person here that neither knows nor cares anything about the Chicago Reader. The explanations were given specifically about the functioning of the SDMB. If we’re now being told there’s some $120k debt, then was what we were told earlier correct? And if what we were told before was correct, should this not rule out any reference to previous costs of the boards? All we would like is clarification, which is never forthcoming. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167/20 "2005-08-25T01:16:11Z")
(Oh, and the other ‘if’ - if the $120k is irrelevant, why did a moderator bring it up?) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-paying-subscribers-does-this-board-currently-have/318167.md?page=2)