7 replies to this topic

[Pro Pizza! >:D]

Hey I was wondering, why is there ads on the website? I thought some people are donating? I cant cuz im saving for wii u(or ps3.. or xbox... depends on how much i save..) D:

[Feld0]

Is this about Wii U Go, Wii U Blog, or Wii U Forums? I can't speak for Wii U Blog, as that's owned by David, but I can tell you what's up with Wii U Go and Wii U Forums.

No one is donating, and I don't want to ever have to collect money from readers of Wii U Go or members of Wii U Forums directly. I've added the ads to help cover the sites' expenses - they do cost a fair bit to run, especially for a teenage student like myself, as everything from domain registrations to a server to IP.Board costs money. Besides regular ads, you may also see affiliate links to online merchants like Amazon which I earn a small commission from every time you buy something through them (that's what this is all about).

On the forums, I've made most of the ads go away once you log in as an incentive to register. However, depending on how my finances play out in the future, it may not always stay that way. However, I assure you that both Wii U Go and Wii U Forums will always remain free to use, no matter what happens.

I'm sorry if the ads make things look ugly, but they're the only way I can finance the sites without asking people to give me money directly. It would be fine if I was running Wii U Go and Wii U Forums as not-for-profit fan sites, but that's not the case - I run them as a business, and do intend to eventually earn a profit from them (at least Wii U Go, anyway - forums usually just barely make enough to sustain themselves). Therefore, it would be a bit unethical to accept donations, wouldn't it?

Edited by Feld0, 28 June 2011 - 02:29 PM.
Clarification

[GwJumpman]

lolwut. Feld0 is 16; do you REALLY expect him to pay completely out of pocket for all of this? I know I wouldn't even if I had a job lol. I'd slap ads in there in an instant.

[Tony Bradshaw]

Wow, you're 16? Nice to have a couple websites already!

[Feld0]

lolwut. Feld0 is 16; do you REALLY expect him to pay completely out of pocket for all of this? I know I wouldn't even if I had a job lol. I'd slap ads in there in an instant.

At this point, I'm still paying for almost everything out-of-pocket. The ads are bringing some income in, but it just barely takes care of the server (which will eventually need upgrading, too). I've taken on a summer job to help finance everything in the meantime.

Wow, you're 16? Nice to have a couple websites already!

Yep, your head admin is only 16. Wii U Go and Wii U Forums are my first real web projects, and I hope you're all enjoying them so far. I've got plans to launch a couple more websites before I get to college (most notably this one), but these two are my main priority right now.

[Camcam281]

Ads are fine. They are tiny in the bottom corner so what does it matter anyway?!?!?! It is something easy, and a good way to support this place IMO that is

[nintendo3DS]

I dont care about the ads, even on any other website i ignore ads most of the time. Unless it really catches my eye of something interesting such as- battlefield 3 or MW3 or something about the 3DS. But ya, i dont care about them. As long as it keeps this site going and supports it.

[Feld0]

Ads are fine. They are tiny in the bottom corner so what does it matter anyway?!?!?! It is something easy, and a good way to support this place IMO that is

The ones on Wii U Go are anything but tiny. They take up a good portion of the area above the fold.

The little ads in the corner of thewiiu.com are actually proving to be more or less ineffective, so I've removed them for the time being.