blonde, going forward.

[Dingdell]

i was not and am not trying to stick the boot in and i wish blonde all the best. I know this decision hasn't been taken lightly but I do feel in the months to come tony will regret it.

to use your analagy we have to lose the glitter and stick with the glue- whats to stop someone else nicking the glitter and everyone going to wherever the glitter goes? this will mean the glue no longer has anything to hold together.

when you have to cut costs in business it doesnt make sense imo to let your best assets go first. they are the thing that attracts most people to your business in the first place and if you let them go there isn't much left so its a false economy to cut costs like this.  

I don't think you were trying to stick the boot in at all, we're just looking at it from different angles is all.

As it is the glitter doesn't provide any income for Blonde anyway (or not much as I understand it) it doesn't reflect in increased revenue for the card room which is where income is generated for Blonde. I agree the updates are one of the great things about Blonde but I still come on here even when there isn't an update because there are other things that I enjoy too.

So, with me being devils advocate Ariston, if you were blonde today how would you pay the updaters if the person who negotiates all the deals has gone (Tighty the glue person) and after a few months the deals dry up and there is no money to run the site at all?

Lets open that up to all - think outside the box and lets come up with ideas...

[ariston]

just as a suggestion I think if live updates where offered to platinum members of blonde at $x per month transfered through the blonde card room I feel you would have no problem covering the costs. There is a blonde faithfull who definately wouldnt mind chipping x per month so they still get their updates. This would also increase traffic to your cardroom as many players who watch the updates would open blonde accounts to fund the updates and no doubt play a few hands there as well.

this is only a first idea but I feel many people on blonde would rather be given at least the option of funding the updates rather than losing them. Hell even I would open a blonde account and happily chip in if it means the updates are still available. I know you have always said you wanted to keep the updates free but now its clear you can't you should at least give the members here a choice of saving them

given a week to sort out another option would be to get a commercial partner to back the updates. Given the number of visitors you have to the updates this would not be a problem in the slightest for any half decent salesman. I have a company now that would happily cover snoops and flopsys wages and costs if you wouldnt mind whoring out certain aspects of your site. Its a matter of how much you really want the updates to carry on.

save snoops and flops campaign starts here

[mondatoo]

i was not and am not trying to stick the boot in and i wish blonde all the best. I know this decision hasn't been taken lightly but I do feel in the months to come tony will regret it.

to use your analagy we have to lose the glitter and stick with the glue- whats to stop someone else nicking the glitter and everyone going to wherever the glitter goes? this will mean the glue no longer has anything to hold together.

when you have to cut costs in business it doesnt make sense imo to let your best assets go first. they are the thing that attracts most people to your business in the first place and if you let them go there isn't much left so its a false economy to cut costs like this.  

I agree that floppy snoops & all the updaters do a great job.However,your saying that the updates are the main part of the forum but in what sense ? Certainly not in a financial sense it would seem as they aren't providing much or any revenue from reading what's been said therefore i would suggest maybe they're not the greatest assets to blonde since that's who they've let go 1st,I'm pretty sure they didn't decide this lightly and maybe it's a bit patronising to rich/tikay to suggest they've made such a catastophic error which is how your post reads.Also most of the people who register on blonde to read the updates don't seem to provide anything else i.e playing on the cardroom,using the links so what does that provide to blonde financially ?

I hope,and fully expect that blonde will come through this difficult time.Also to compare blonde to trillion is just bs mate

[ariston]

i was not and am not trying to stick the boot in and i wish blonde all the best. I know this decision hasn't been taken lightly but I do feel in the months to come tony will regret it.

to use your analagy we have to lose the glitter and stick with the glue- whats to stop someone else nicking the glitter and everyone going to wherever the glitter goes? this will mean the glue no longer has anything to hold together.

when you have to cut costs in business it doesnt make sense imo to let your best assets go first. they are the thing that attracts most people to your business in the first place and if you let them go there isn't much left so its a false economy to cut costs like this.  

I agree that floppy snoops & all the updaters do a great job.However,your saying that the updates are the main part of the forum but in what sense ? Certainly not in a financial sense it would seem as they aren't providing much or any revenue from reading what's been said therefore i would suggest maybe they're not the greatest assets to blonde since that's who they've let go 1st,I'm pretty sure they didn't decide this lightly and maybe it's a bit patronising to rich/tikay to suggest they've made such a catastophic error which is how your post reads.Also most of the people who register on blonde to read the updates don't seem to provide anything else i.e playing on the cardroom,using the links so what does that provide to blonde financially ?

I hope,and fully expect that blonde will come through this difficult time.Also to compare blonde to trillion is just bs mate

i was not meaning to compare blonde to trillion and i apologise if thats the way it came across. I was saying they would go the way of trillion ie pop (being that is current in everyones mind). Trillion fcked everyone over and tony will confirm I warned him last july and also september what was happening there. Blonde has never tried to have anyone over so they are different in that respect.

[Ginger]

You might have missed it Ariston, but the updates were sponsored for 2 years...

[The Camel]

I must say Blonde's updates are BY FAR the best available.

And that isn't a slight on other updaters.

It's just the interaction plus the skill of the updaters adds immensely to the pleasure of the reader.

I would definitely contribute to any fund.

[ripple11]

Hell even I would open a blonde account and happily chip in if it means the updates are still available.

Play on Blonde = healthy Blonde.

Brilliant...why didn't I think of that??

[ariston]

I must say Blonde's updates are BY FAR the best available.

And that isn't a slight on other updaters.

It's just the interaction plus the skill of the updaters adds immensely to the pleasure of the reader.

I would definitely contribute to any fund.

and you wouldnt be the only one keith. the problem is we arent being given that option as the decision has already been made. i dont think tikay and tighty realise what an asset the updates and update team is. many would happily pay for them to continue. 

without the updates i wont have a reason to come here anymore, ok most will say thats no great loss but how many others will feel the same way?

[cia260895]

how much traffic do the updates get approx?

[mondatoo]

i was not and am not trying to stick the boot in and i wish blonde all the best. I know this decision hasn't been taken lightly but I do feel in the months to come tony will regret it.

to use your analagy we have to lose the glitter and stick with the glue- whats to stop someone else nicking the glitter and everyone going to wherever the glitter goes? this will mean the glue no longer has anything to hold together.

when you have to cut costs in business it doesnt make sense imo to let your best assets go first. they are the thing that attracts most people to your business in the first place and if you let them go there isn't much left so its a false economy to cut costs like this.  

I agree that floppy snoops & all the updaters do a great job.However,your saying that the updates are the main part of the forum but in what sense ? Certainly not in a financial sense it would seem as they aren't providing much or any revenue from reading what's been said therefore i would suggest maybe they're not the greatest assets to blonde since that's who they've let go 1st,I'm pretty sure they didn't decide this lightly and maybe it's a bit patronising to rich/tikay to suggest they've made such a catastophic error which is how your post reads.Also most of the people who register on blonde to read the updates don't seem to provide anything else i.e playing on the cardroom,using the links so what does that provide to blonde financially ?

I hope,and fully expect that blonde will come through this difficult time.Also to compare blonde to trillion is just bs mate

i was not meaning to compare blonde to trillion and i apologise if thats the way it came across. I was saying they would go the way of trillion ie pop (being that is current in everyones mind). Trillion fcked everyone over and tony will confirm I warned him last july and also september what was happening there. Blonde has never tried to have anyone over so they are different in that respect.

I just meant making general comparisons didn't think you ment it like that.TBH i'm knackered and cba to say out more as i'll put it across wrong  .My point was just that the updates really don't seem to be blondes biggest asset

Edit I'm pretty sure most people who contribute to blonde in anyway will continue to do so with or without the updates

[Dingdell]

just as a suggestion I think if live updates where offered to platinum members of blonde at $x per month transfered through the blonde card room I feel you would have no problem covering the costs. There is a blonde faithfull who definately wouldnt mind chipping x per month so they still get their updates. This would also increase traffic to your cardroom as many players who watch the updates would open blonde accounts to fund the updates and no doubt play a few hands there as well.

this is only a first idea but I feel many people on blonde would rather be given at least the option of funding the updates rather than losing them. Hell even I would open a blonde account and happily chip in if it means the updates are still available. I know you have always said you wanted to keep the updates free but now its clear you can't you should at least give the members here a choice of saving them

given a week to sort out another option would be to get a commercial partner to back the updates. Given the number of visitors you have to the updates this would not be a problem in the slightest for any half decent salesman. I have a company now that would happily cover snoops and flopsys wages and costs if you wouldnt mind whoring out certain aspects of your site. Its a matter of how much you really want the updates to carry on.

save snoops and flops campaign starts here

1. Ariston - you don't already play -  even a little on Blonde to help towards costs?  

2. I think Tikay has already said he is not keen on the paying for updates because people with cut and paste and those that have paid will get cheesed off. I love the idea of paying for updates, and perhaps paying the updaters a percenate of any new sign ups generated from them. (Not sure how that would be measured though)  

Lets not forget though that I think Tikay's focus is on paying some money to Richard. If Richard doesn't get paid soon he will have to disappear (I think it's been 6 months or so) so any money that is generated has to go towards him rather than updaters as I understand it.

I think it would be wrong to start playing emotional roulette and offering to save the updaters. None of this is a shock to them as far as I know, and I am hopeful that they will be back sooner rather than later.

Perhaps if people are really keen we can persuade Tikay to take on board the pay for updates idea, it's a good commercial asset in my opinion, and Blonde is not a charity. I'm sad to say that Tikay has a certain humility (IMO) about him that seems to stop him wanting payment for updates, sweet but close to commercial suicide imo. Howabout a poll??!

[iorek]

Blonde Poker account opened.

Fold when 5ukkkraM bets on the river.

Off to Broadway now for the £150 - hopefully see at least a couple of dozen others have done the same when I come back with my winnings.

[ariston]

I will be honest tracey. I hardly play poker anymore at all. I work full time in the poker industry now and have little time or motivation to play anymore. When I left geoff.cc in november after putting a lot of time and effort in I really didnt have any motivation to play anymore and that need/hunger hasnt come back. if/when it does I will certainly play blonde if it helps get the updates back on. Even if I wasnt playing on blonde I would still happily contribute to the fund to pay snoops and floppsy to continue with the updates- live updates without them are imo just cards and numbers and i get paid to look at those all day already.

[The Camel]

I obviously knew Blue Squirrel did their own updates, but surely throwing £1000 to blondepoker for them to do some parellel updates is just business sense.

Hell, use Peter alongside Floppy and Snoopy.

I think they would get more use of their sponsorship money to spend it on blonde updates (with a few plugs to their upcoming tournies obv) than to put in 3-5 players in each event.

[byronkincaid]

they're both on the same network tho. i think blonde should take a look at entraction as a possible up and coming network