MARCH 16, 2009 8:55PM

Guilt Reduction on OS

Rate: 10 Flag

 

 guilty-puppy

 

Designator has a recent post about Salon’s financial status.  Two things are very important to note in his post:

  • As of September 30, 2008, Salon had an accumulated deficit of $98.2 million.
  • Salon also derives a significant portion of its revenues from its Salon Premium subscription program. This source of revenue has been decreasing since Salon's quarter ended December 31, 2004 when paid subscriptions peaked at approximately 89,100 and decreased to approximately 28,500 as of September 30, 2008. Salon expects this downward trend to continue.
To me, these are very frightening figures which I feel reflect a very real threat to the continued viability of Salon and OS.  If you feel Salon and OS are an important part of your life, as I do, a very simple thing you can do to help Salon and OS is to become a Salon Premium subscriber.

 

If nothing else, becoming a Premium Subscriber might make you feel less guilty when you indulge in the excellent writing that you find at these two sites.  And if you haven’t felt guilty about not being a Premium Subscriber, I sincerely hope that you will after reader this post.  As a former victim of the Catholic school system, I can assure you that guilt reduction feels very good. 

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gossip, business, salon, os

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New Blog,

I would be more concerned that if you don't become a Premium Subscriber, both OS and Salon will be deleted.
mikek
March 16, 2009 09:07 PM
Thanks for the information. Like the dog too!
Dr. Spudman44
March 16, 2009 09:14 PM
I was a premium subscriber long before I joined OS. Subscribe everyone!
voicegal
March 16, 2009 09:17 PM
I am a paid subscriber. I'm thinking if they made it possible to get a seniors discount or a student discount, or even a sliding scale, more folks would pay.
Dr. Susanne Freeborn
March 16, 2009 09:17 PM
Mikek, it was kind of shocking to see that not so long ago there were 89,100 subscribers and now the number is around 28,500. I had to wonder what happened to all of the subscribers? Did they become complacent and think all was well? On a serious subject like this multiple posts are important as so much gets lost in the fast pace of the activity feed.
designanator
March 16, 2009 09:53 PM
Excellent Idea! I worried about my local newspaper going down, and now OS??? ACK.
C Berg
March 16, 2009 09:57 PM
Awww . . . . sorry, you lost me after the cute doggy pic.

Just kidding, anyhoos it wouldn't surprise me if OS did become a "$= membership" site in the near future, but I have to agree with Newblog, changes are sorely needed!

Rated
LadyMiko
March 16, 2009 09:59 PM
LadyMiko, you will be interested to know that back on June 4th I posted about OS being made into a site that would require a small subscription and Kerry commented saying OS would continue to be free. Whether this plan changes in the future still remains to be seen, naturally.

http://open.salon.com/blog/designanator/
2008/06/04/pay_for_play_keep_this_freeper-free
designanator
March 16, 2009 10:23 PM
I think what is important here is to bring this issue to the attention of the Salon and OS readership. Salon and OS will fail if they are not financially viable. If you are concerned about the viability of these web sites:

1. Please become a Salon Premium Subsciber.

2. Write your own post expressing your concerns and encourage other readers to act.

Doing nothing will ensure that OS and Salon will become nothing.
mikek
March 16, 2009 10:30 PM
Thank you for this information
fireeyes24
March 16, 2009 10:45 PM