| But I'm already a VIP on MAL.... |
| This is like a mark of shame. |
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| I'll also pass on this. It seems kind of silly supporting an anime database site. If it was Wikipedia then yeah I'd donate but this... not happening. |
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| I am curious whether or not you developers are going to tell us if you reached the goal for raising the needed money, that MAL is "saved". Not that money is not always needed but I am still curious to know the status of MAl Budget, especially if it is some day going to shut down especially if that is somewhat soon (1 year from now or such). |
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| Seems like a step forward after all this time! Will be looking forward to see how far forward this can take MAL! Keep it up guys, looking forward to supporting you guys in the very near future! *cough* 30 character limit |
dave said: Purefect said: I think the whole recurring payment aspect is a bit toxic, maybe a donation drive for the same thing would've been better. That would serve the same purpose. Supporters are just donators under a subscription. And you can cancel the reoccurring payments at any time, and they don't renew until your previous month is over. Every subscription runs this way. That's why it's called a subscription service. It provides no real benefit except a way to give money directly to MAL without clicking on or looking at ads. Or perhaps a Premium MAL monthly magazine could justify a subscription to the site? Who would write the magazine? What would it be about? The article system on MAL already does this for everyone, for free. There'd be no reason to do this. And it makes your post sound like supporters don't get enough? When it's not really that kind of system. It's a donation sub like patreon. Nothing more. You get a few little perks that don't really account for much in the end. I don't think you understood me correctly. It's blatantly obvious that's how a subscription service works, and If you understood what I said you'd know that's what I'm against in the first place. Why not cater to the people who just want to do a single one-off donation? yes they can go and cancel the subscription but then what benefit do they get? The post itself hasn't clarified if they retain the forum title. But look I understand what you mean, it's not meant to be a service where they get anything, people who want to help MAL can do so and people who don't, won't have to and they wont miss out on much. I'm not sure what you're trying to argue here anyways, you've just explained how a subscription works. There'd be no reason to do this. And it makes your post sound like supporters don't get enough? When it's not really that kind of system. Now I can understand why you've said this, maybe I should've worded it differently but I wasn't expecting to have to spoon-feed anyone. The magazine suggestion was to try and promote more thought into what other things they could offer you (as they were asking for suggestions) as they want people to get onto this payment plan, they've already offered a donator-tag of sorts, so they are trying to entice people to sign up for the subscription (this sounds evil but I don't intend it to be) It doesn't even have to be a magazine it was just a passing thought, even something like a subscriber forum board where passionate users can come together to discuss such things and post suggestions, as they're the ones who are funding the website they can have their thoughts and suggestions heard. To answer your questions I'm not sure what should be in the magazine as I haven't thought much about it, maybe they could try get some interviews with studios, or do some Q&A's, light novel suggestions, funny stories and featuring MAL users artworks you know? But alas I know the image that MAL is trying to maintain where the site is free to use and there's not "Pay-to-win" notion, which is why I suggested something small like a magazine which didn't already exist (although articles do but they're all single subject usually so you know what you're in for) It's extra labour but you're going to be involving the community more which is what they should want in the first place. Depending on the reception from the community we hope to be able to continue to provide more development across MAL moving forward. That includes more features surrounding the MAL Supporter plan (we’d love to hear your suggestions!) And they were asking for suggestions and they do intend to create a premium service anyways. In the end you have your own opinion on subscriptions and I have mine, and those who don't work don't eat in my world. And to outline all I meant to portray; - I believe there should be a one-off donator option (without having to cancel a monthly subscription) - A community driven magazine, which with extra effort on MAL's end can be subscribed to on our end. So In future please don't attack me for voicing my opinion. |
PurefectSep 20, 2016 9:25 AM
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Purefect said: I don't think you understood me correctly. It's blatantly obvious that's how a subscription service works, and If you understood what I said you'd know that's what I'm against in the first place. Why not cater to the people who just want to do a single one-off donation? yes they can go and cancel the subscription but then what benefit do they get? The post itself hasn't clarified if they retain the forum title. It says right on the FAQ for the Supporter Page that the benefits for subbing then canceling your sub remain until the month that you paid for runs out. It takes 10 seconds or less to cancel your sub at any time. Here's the quote from the page: What happens if I cancel my MAL Supporter subscription? Once you cancel your subscription, you can still enjoy the benefits of being a MAL Supporter until the next renewal date. After that, the benefits will become unavailable. It has been clarified. You can very easily one-off donate with this system. And it takes little to no effort. Now I can understand why you've said this, maybe I should've worded it differently but I wasn't expecting to have to spoon-feed anyone. "I wasn't aware I would have to explain my reasoning behind my suggestions". The magazine suggestion was to try and promote more thought into what other things they could offer you (as they were asking for suggestions) as they want people to get onto this payment plan, they've already offered a donator-tag of sorts, so they are trying to entice people to sign up for the subscription (this sounds evil but I don't intend it to be) It doesn't even have to be a magazine it was just a passing thought, even something like a subscriber forum board where passionate users can come together to discuss such things and post suggestions, as they're the ones who are funding the website they can have their thoughts and suggestions heard. 1: The magazine would still not serve a purpose in that regard. Articles serve that purpose. Yes they offered a cosmetic tag and badge. That takes insanely less amount of work to implement, then it is to write a magazine every month for a sub base. - To answer your questions I'm not sure what should be in the magazine as I haven't thought much about it, maybe they could try get some interviews with studios, or do some Q&A's, light novel suggestions, funny stories and featuring MAL users artworks you know? Yes this all takes a lot of work. This is what I mean. This is unreasonable to expect in a donation service, and MAL is no where near being prominent enough to get interviews with animation studios. Suggestions are already built into the base site in the form of recommendations. Funny stories would pertain to MAL how? And we have a whole creative board dedicated to creative things MAL users do. None of those suggestions are really appealing. 2: A sub only board would create a paid club of sorts. And the MAL staff have already commented multiple times in this thread, that they want to avoid any sort of "holier then thou" things or thoughts in this service. A board that you must pay to enter, effectively goes against that. It's extra labour but you're going to be involving the community more which is what they should want in the first place. It's more than just extra labor. And they were asking for suggestions and they do intend to create a premium service anyways. In the end you have your own opinion on subscriptions and I have mine, and those who don't work don't eat in my world. So In future please don't attack me for voicing my opinion. A paid sub without creating a distinctive massive burden on the MAL staff or creating superiority among users can really only be accomplished through cosmetic things. Otherwise you will make the paid sub objectively better then the free user service, which they want to avoid and said they want to avoid. Remember this is called "MAL Supporter". Not "MAL Premium". It is a donation subscription. Not a premium service. You're confusing the two. So In future please don't attack me for voicing my opinion. Literally no one has attacked you. I'm attacking your opinion. And the two are not the same. If you voice your opinion, you give other people the right to criticize it. |
| I honesty don't get the difference between 'supporter' and 'subscription'. I mean it's basically the same thing: giving money to a web site to help them maintain the site and getting a little something in return. Calling it a different name doesn't change anything. On another site I go on, they call the people who donate money to the site 'Elites' so changing the name is not changing what the purpose is, which is to get money.Now, again, I have no problems with them implementing this supporter feature, as long as they keep the stuff that's already free, free. |
| I'm okay with this. I honestly don't see how you can NOT be. Do you people realize that it takes money to run and maintain a website? We are being offered a service that we enjoy, that's why we're all here. Expecting that for free is just selfish. |
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skyrocketing said: I'm okay with this. I honestly don't see how you can NOT be. Do you people realize that it takes money to run and maintain a website? We are being offered a service that we enjoy, that's why we're all here. Expecting that for free is just selfish. Um, I sure people on here are not stupid and know that it costs money to run a web site. Also this site was free for twelve years, and just now started this supporter feature, so there is that little tidbit. Also, just because you, as an individual person, is okay with this, you shouldn't expect everyone else to be also. I see more people supporting this feature than not supporting it. But that's just me. |
ArillionSep 20, 2016 12:42 PM
Ari_the_Lioness said: skyrocketing said: I'm okay with this. I honestly don't see how you can NOT be. Do you people realize that it takes money to run and maintain a website? We are being offered a service that we enjoy, that's why we're all here. Expecting that for free is just selfish. Um, I sure people on here are not stupid and know that it costs money to run a web site. Also this site was free for twelve years, and just now started this supporter feature, so there is that little tidbit. Free but relied on ad revenue. When so many users use an ad-blocker it makes sense they want to look for another source of money. |
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Ari_the_Lioness said: I honesty don't get the difference between 'supporter' and 'subscription'. I mean it's basically the same thing: giving money to a web site to help them maintain the site and getting a little something in return. Calling it a different name doesn't change anything. On another site I go on, they call the people who donate money to the site 'Elites' so changing the name is not changing what the purpose is, which is to get money.Now, again, I have no problems with them implementing this supporter feature, as long as they keep the stuff that's already free, free. There is a difference however in how the service needs to be provided. MAL does not want the services or perks that are provided to donators to be better then the free experience. It seems like semantics, but there really is a difference between paying for a service and donating. It makes more sense to keep this as a donation platform with some cosmetic perks. Ari_the_Lioness said: Also this site was free for twelve years, and just now started this supporter feature, so there is that little tidbit. MAL now is not the same as MAL 12 years ago. The internet as well is also not the same with more users. Here's a good post from an admin explaining the whole situation: Kineta said: MAL has a had a problem with bringing in enough income to support its operational costs since before it was purchased by Crave. The site sat desolate with barely any code changes or fixes for years, and it was basically a burden until DeNA took the initiative to buy it and start trying to bring years of lost development to the website. MAL used to have old servers that could lag over 12 hours from the current time. Forum posts would appear 12 hours later. And it took half a year for this to get fixed under Crave. If the site was making so much money before added features, streaming and articles, why was it basically abandoned like the unwanted, red-headed stepchild? It wasn't. The "operational costs" you're talking about are things that bring casual users to the site—a good portion of which have adblock disabled. This improves our Google ranking, which in turn brings more users, and helps to actually keep the site afloat. If these things you mentioned actually cost more money than they were worth, DeNA would cut them off. I suggest giving this user's post a read: MAL was basically losing money and was barely kept afloat until it was bought by Crave. Even under Crave it was terrible and barely functioned. MAL didn't change anything until very recently. Also considering the dominance of MAL on Google searches for any anime ever, more people are coming to the site than ever before. Let's not pretend MAL hasn't grown a lot in that 10+ year time frame. And in turn supporting the more users is going to run you waaaay more costs. It makes sense they're branching out to sponsors and revenue streams. Because it's really going to help the site in the long run. |
TsundereHeart said: Ari_the_Lioness said: But they should realize we've had way more features and site updates in the very recent past than in like say the past couple years or so.Um, I sure people on here are not stupid and know that it costs money to run a web site. Also this site was free for twelve years, and just now started this supporter feature, so there is that little tidbit. Also, just because you, as an individual person, is okay with this, you shouldn't expect everyone else to be also. I see more people supporting this feature than not supporting it. But that's just me. (well some of these updates sucked but yeah...they're definitely putting more effort / manpower into the site which translates to needing more money). Basically what I'm try to say is, the part about the last 12 years being free isn't comparable to them needing money now. The only good update they made was the notifications though. Everything else is either a change for the worse, or just plain removal of features. |
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| Guys...please...PayPal |
| Pretty good, but yeah disastrous not having PayPal as a payment option. Who wants to use their actual debit or credit card information directly onto any site today? |
| Woah, This one is nice :D Though I can't support now :( Gonna stick on free account XD But thank you so much MAL <3 |
 - barely alive - |
| I got mine, finally. But I will stop monthly payments if MAL decides to start censoring their database(hentai) and starts doing what AP(competitor whose name will not be released) - treating hentai like a criminal thing that cannot be shown on the internet. |
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Quantization said: Pretty good, but yeah disastrous not having PayPal as a payment option. Who wants to use their actual debit or credit card information directly onto any site today? Just waiting for the announcement that someone has hacked MAL and stolen everyone's payment details. |
Rojo said: Quantization said: Pretty good, but yeah disastrous not having PayPal as a payment option. Who wants to use their actual debit or credit card information directly onto any site today? Just waiting for the announcement that someone has hacked MAL and stolen everyone's payment details. Even if they do and succeed, they'll get nothing as all information are stored in Stripe. |
| Ok it won't take my card, do you guys take paypal? |
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| Well, I think the elitist vs casual distinction/discrimination/debate has just progressed into its next phase |
WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS. |
agus_kun said: how to get into the club please Top of this page.... HELP heading drop down......bottom of the drop down has MAL Supporter ...... follow the instructions and Bingo! I just did the annual sign up..... I am fine with the cost .... to me it is the price of a solo dinner and a movie. So since I tend to watch anime and eat junk while doing it all, it's about the same. Then posting on the forums about what I just watched, is like taking a friend along to the movie. So in my confused mental state.... it all works out just perfect. Color me satisfied! |
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| Will new payment methods be added soon? I don't have a card, but I would love to become a supporter. |
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| I really want to laugh this off like I usually do, so let me get it out of the way. HAHAHAHA. MAL, you never cease to disappoint when it comes to crap decisions. 30 chara was bad enough, ads bs was worse. This is just sad. Let it be known that I have not and will not pay a single pence to an organisation that squanders enough of its money as it is. Custom title? Really? Onii-chan said: Please remove the characters limit for MAL Supporter :( As someone who won't be a supporter, I disagree! You must suffer along with us peasants >:D |
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Onii-chan said: That's right, VIP Shitposter > Supporter. My powerlevel is too intense for you bruhOneTrueEmiya said: Bow before me, you pleb. We don't stand on the same ground.As someone who won't be a supporter, I disagree! You must suffer along with us peasants >:D |
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| I won't disable my Adblock If MAL don't fix the shits they have done, I noticed people are considering that too, especially about the 30 character limit. |
| Today they say you're crazy, tomorrow they will say you're a genious. |
| I mean, I want to support you guys now that I have a job, but I'm not just not that active on here anymore. I'm still salty about that August 2015 profile layout change too, and us losing the ability to publicly see who favorited characters. This website is pretty broken on mobile too. So no money for now, but I still think it's about time you guys did something like this anyway so good on you. I'll just be supporting from the shadows by writing stuff for MAL Rewrite. Still though, where are the MAL Rewrite badges we were promised forever ago, smh. |
   I envy your delusion; I wish I could live in it  |
This won't become an "elitist" system, it'll just be a new way to laugh at people for paying for free services. @Kineta |
Play League of Legends here! Autocrat said: Hitler was good, objectively. |
| As many already said: Paypal. I don't even have a credit card, they're not standard in my country, and if I did I wouldn't give the information out online as well, I don't mind helping but it must be a secure method at least... |
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| After being on the fence, I decided to be a supporter. |
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| I really disliked the ads that covered the whole sides of the website so I turned on my adblock, but this is a great alternative. I love this place, so it's a great way for me to browse MAL ad-free and support it at the same time :) |
Frag- said: I won't disable my Adblock If MAL don't fix the shits they have done, I noticed people are considering that too, especially about the 30 character limit. This, it's not worth my money with all the problems atm. Besides, it was a free service, and if it stops being free there are always alternatives. |
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| When paypal is added as a payment, I'll help MAL. |
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Zach said: i agree with thisas long as regular members don't lose features we already have and have to get them back by becoming a member I'm fine with this |
| Signature removed. Please follow the signature rules, as defined in the Site & Forum Guidelines. |
| Will think about this first before I make a decision... maybe subscribe... maybe not. But I wish there were more features in return of the spent money. |
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