$$$ RAGING BULL PLANNING FEE-BASED PREMIUM $ERVICE$! $$$
This morning I went to Raging Bull's website. Immediately a survey popped up (pop-up killer was turned off).
It was a Raging Bull survey asking if the user would be interested in fee-based premium services.
The survey began by asking questions to establish the validity of the user, i.e.,
- member rating ($$$$),
- how many times you visit the site,
- how many times you post,
- price of the stocks on the board user posts on (under/over $5),
- Income,
- Value of investments,
- Online broker,
- User's opinion of how well TOS is enforced,
- User's opinion of the site,
- etc.
The survey went on to ask more detailed questions: Would user pay for:
- Posting
- Multiple page views
- Screening
- Private boards
- Better monitoring of the TOS
- Private boards (they are already there!)
- Advertising-free site
- Any requests?
Not trying to brag, but I am considered very test-wise (means I work quickly and accurately) and completing the survey took me < 10 minutes - it was very detailed (actually a good survey, with no stone left unturned). I then went to the Raging Bull PCW board and reported on the survey and posting my opinion about Raging Bull changing their service to fee-based site.
I compared their proposal with the services at Silicon Investor.
- There are no posts containing advertising, very little attacking/insulting, spam, etc. on SI. (did not mention Coffee Shop boards are less restrictive). And there are advertisements on the Silicon Investor site - but I don't notice them, except on the home page.
- Multiple page views are available (10 posts/view)
- Any SI member can create a board, and elect to have a monitored board and restrict users.
- The Private Message feature at Silicon Investor allows members to communicate without cluttering the boards and revealing email addresses, one might wish to keep confidential.
- I am sure there are many other features, but the above are the ones I particular enjoy.
Both sites had reduced staff a few months ago and speculated that RB might be availing themselves of the service of SI Bob who has alias (at least 2) at Raging Bull. Raging Bull does not give users any access to the Raging Bull staff and SI has email address for SI, PMs, SI-related boards and a PHONE# that gives SI'ers access to SI staff AND SI is very responsive to their members' problems. Why would anyone who already has SI posting membership, subscribe to fee-based services at RB? Especially after experiencing how Raging Bull presently enforces their Terms of Service.
There are posters who have posting privileges at both sites (SI and RB), and thus already have access to SI where most of the Raging Bull proposed services exist.
I also gave my opinion that Raging Bull might not immediately close the free boards, but might phase them out slowly. If the old boards do not exist, then "valuable" information posted would be forever lost. LOL
The HW (hardlyworkin)-type poster on Raging Bull does not get Tossed, even though most people TOS the post. If the HW-type subscribed to the fee-based service, I seriously doubt Raging Bull would toss HW-type posters - while annoying, HW almost always stays within the terms of service (except for one post where he accused someone of being unpatriotic) and to my knowledge has never been suspended.
The fee-based posting would eliminate most people from having more than one alias. At $200/alias, I don't know anyone who would pay $200/pop for additional posting names. Although I could care less who anyone says they are or aren't, there is one member at Raging Bull who is absolutely paranoid and accuses people right and left of being other people - that would not go over well at Silicon Investor nor do we tolerate any Silicon poster who continually snipes at another poster. That type of poster would soon lose privileges or be blackballed here. By blackballed I mean that a new monitored board would be started and the person excluded from posting.
IMO, Raging Bull is not testing the waters. Raging Bull is going to change their site to a fee-based service and probably on or before 1/1/02.
When SI changed to fee-based posting, the existing members automatically were given (free) lifetime membership. Will Raging Bull extend the same courtesy to their "loyal" members and give them FREE premium membership? NOT!
This afternoon, I went back to Raging Bull and my post had been removed! It was not a violation of Raging Bull's TOS. Evidently FREE SPEECH does not exist at Raging Bull.
There are one or two Raging Bull members who constantly trash and attack RB posters who also post on SI. They ridicule them for paying for the SI membership -- he who laughs last, laughs best!
Guess who gets the last laugh? LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL
MerryWhoInvitesHerRagingBullFriendsToVisit
SiliconInvestor.com:
siliconinvestor.com
And
The PCW Board:
Subject 50578
Email me at:
merryfield@ragingbull.com
Or:
merry693@siliconinvestor.com |
