Different pricing regimes

[Brandal]

To mr. Fred B)

 

---If you had a choice of playing in a random free tournament

---or spending 5 cents to play in the imaginary tourney I described,

---would you really play in the free tourney? If so, why?

 

Well Fred,I'm not here to play for money,I have actually won a few

tourneys and I never wished "ohhh....if only there was money in it

for me".In other words I play for the enjoyment alone.

Now,having believed the Hosts/TDs of each tourney got the starting money

alone,not knowing some of the $ found their way to BBO to help with

expenses running BBO,I chose not to play in pay tourneys.

 

It is NOT a principle,as I have to pay to play "live" bridge it is not some

shocking observation to me that people charge to arrange. B)

 

When some of it goes to help financing BBO as a site,I see pay tourneys

differently and will consider p(l)aying in those tourneys who help finance BBO.

I'm not at all against small fees to keep BBO up and running,we get so much back.

 

---Do you feel that the fact that you happen to have a pulse "entitles"

---you to a free, high-quality,online bridge service?

 

No I do not.

 

I will think this over,including the rest of what you wrote that I haven't quoted,

and find out what's best for me.

 

I appreciate your cander and insight,there were a few things in your post I

haven't given any thought until now.

[sceptic]

Sherri, Fred, Uday,

 

The time and effort you put into this site is amazing, you must really love the game, you have offered me and everyone else something totally free and given me the chance to learn this game (which I love) properly, I brought my $40 worth of BBO bucks with the intention of playing in some pay tourneys, I have probably spent $10, which is a paltry sum one I can easily afford (I am not rich by the way), I would have no issue with paying to play here, it is the best site I have used and I think I have tried them all except okbridge.

 

I have no issue with pay tourneys, with or without prizes, I brought bridgemaster from one of your yellows, I buy books from amazon, this I think I should put right, I will use the shop from now on for what ever I want, if you dont have it, I will ask first, then try else where, I think it is the least i can do, no where else and no one else has ever offered me so much for so little asked of us in return.

 

Perhaps the advertising is a way to generate cash, I hope it proves fruitful for you, it may be worth asking amazon for a link here for book sales as I know they pay you commision if the link is followed up (just an idea), I am sure other book cyber sellers would do the same sort of deal for you, you just need to ask them and it will save you a lot of hassle (you probably already looked into it).

 

So all I say to the rest is why not buy the products and does the odd pay tourney hurt when a % of the cash goes to someone who has given us so much so much of their time ( time is the only thing that you cant get back once it has gone it has gone)

[Gweny]

B) Big thanks to Fred, Uday, and Sheri for this wonderful site and all you give to us. I still am in awe at how many FREE learning resources are available to me and anyother person "with pulse" just by logging on.

 

Thanks again for best bridge on internet.

[1eyedjack]

Fred

 

I am not one of those who have an objection in principle to playing in a pay tourney, so perhaps I should let those who do answer for themselves, but I speculate that one of the reasons is the dreaded ch**ting issue.

 

Having said that I have no objection in principle I should, I think, find it more palatable, or, to use perhaps a more appropriate emphasis, less unpalatable, to be ch**ted out of first place in a tournament that I had not paid for than one that I had paid for.

 

I am one of those who thinks that ch**ting is rather less prevalent than is thought by most of those who have expressed an opinion in this forum, but it does seem to be generally a matter of concern amongst others, and I don't see that it is anything that you can solve, without making the service pretty unpleasant in other respects.

[Frosty]

I am glad you took the opportunity to vent, Fred!

 

I'm a fence sitter regarding the "Pay" tournies. I don't feel that TD's should be charging - rather, just as yellow's and stars are chosen, I think BBO should have reserved the right to determine who is eligible to charge and who isn't. But I also understand why BBO didn't go that route since the policy is largely one of self-determination. I respect both BBO's position and the right of other TD's to charge if they choose. I play in pay tournies if that's when I'm playing and free tournies if that's when I'm playing. The fee is reasonable, and what BBO provides for the players is certainly worth more than I'll spend at BBO. I frankly don 't care who gets what part of it.

 

(Hmmm - it occurs to me that maybe I don't have a pulse afterall LOL).

 

That having been said, I am flabberghasted that people would be so utterly devoid of common courtesy as to call you on your toll free # (free to them - not to you) for such petty issues. Peoples' manners never cease to amaze even me! I think you should change your #. Why have a # where BBO members can reach you except for those you specifically designate - you are WAY too kind! Besides - isn't the negative Email enough??

 

Here's the bottom line - Fred/Uday/Sherry and the yellows that work so hard - do NOT owe us anything. It's the other way around. We, the BBO members - though apparently ungrateful - are on the owing end of this bargain. We've been provided a technologically advanced, responsive and fully functional site at no charge to us. For this, the founders and worker bees have recieved a disproportionate amount of "guff" rather than the appreciation which they all richly deserve! The player community may never fully realize the hours the core group commits to BBO. When I was young enough to do it, I had a career designing, building, enhancing and supporting new computer systems - 80 hours work weeks were common. Not quite so far back there was a brief tour of duty as one of a player group administrating the online bridge site that AOL abandonned - a genuinely thankless task. I don't need any more peeks in the window to know what the core group at BBO has sacrificed. I guaran-darn-tee you, most of us couldn't and wouldn't do it.

 

For those of my fellow BBO members who don't want to play in pay tournaments - I don't see the benefit in biting the hand that feeds you. No one is required to patronize the pay tournies. Why not just make your own choices and forego the criticism? There are plenty of free events still available.

 

I was going to suggest that BBO members should be charged commensurate with their inclination to criticize/gripe/whine, but thought better of it since I might not be able to afford it LOL B)

 

Thanks for all you do for us - Yellows, Fred, Uday and Sherry.

 

Frosty :rolleyes:

[guggie]

Maybe i should make my point more clear. A lot of people give their time free to BBO, as BBO gives many things free to them. That created a great athmosphere.

Then ACBL start with payed tournaments. For non_ACBL players a little annoying, crowding up the tournamentslist and regular general callings even if you have shut down lobby chat, but further no big deal.

Immediately afterwards a number of TD's, covering the european play time, made a congsi to have their tournaments payed. So far it is not clear why these TD's should be payed and others not. In my opinion their action is against the BBO feeling for giving back free for what you get free.

 

I think that the "I am against payed tournaments" sentimenst are directed against the TD's, not against BBO.

 

I would rather pay to BBO.

[rona_]

I voted that I don't really care about different pricing but, as someone else mentioned, in poorer countries, people who own computers, have an internet connection AND play bridge can afford to pay a dollar to play in a tournament. At the moment I live in a developing country where one dollar is a lot of money for the man in the street. But the man-in-the-street, doesn't play bridge. I log on from a developing country, who is to decide whether I should play at a discount? My honesty? The whole idea is just beyond me but as I said, I do not care.

 

Some people play in ACBL tourneys even though they aren't members and have no interest in masterpointsis .

they play to give something back to BBO . This must be the best online bridge-site and obviously a lot of people are putting in a lot of time and effort to keep it running smoothly.

 

But what really takes the cake? The people who will not pay to play and who say they will leave if they have to pay membership fees, are also the ones to make special requests about ads...i.e. no pop-ups please. I don't want to have to click to close the ad etc.....Geez, what is this world coming to! ;) :D :huh: