I'm not as surprised and I don't think it's about the ad itself.  It's about the fact that subscribers were promised ad-free and now they won't be.

I don't know that very many people would actually leave . . where else could they go?  They might not renew though.

I wonder . . if you let a subscription lapse . . do you get 500MB as a freeloader going forward?

ditto, especially since last I looked at the poll, only very few people had chosen this option. Weird...

I just wish the "I would leave" folks had chimed in on the discussion some.  This is a case where the poll results and the discussion diverged quite a bit.

.. need a bottle from that vine..

I think maybe people got confused over the difference between a static sponsorship logo and an ad - the type you see when logged out.

Perhaps a full mock up of what WC would look like with a logo might have helped   

For what it's worth, I think Fuzzy Logic and Zubaz had a great idea about creating mockups to really give people a feel for what the sponsorship graphic would have looked like in context, although the non-subscriber version might have to be a Flash file to illustrate the fact that some (?) of the ads shown to users who are not logged in are animated.

I believe it was stated in Wom's thread (and I tend to agree) that many of those people would probably would have checked off "I will not resubscribe" versus "I will leave" The point was being made that as long as you keep up your ODNT you still have unlimited downloads with the only difference being the ads.

My youngest and I at a wine-tasting 

Original is here

Yes, I think what's needed is a working example of the Sponsorship in action....the 'impact' of which can be seen for/by both subscribers and non-subscribers.

Combine that with a clearer indicator of what actual benefits it will bring [specifically FOR the Subscribers] and my bet is that 33% will diminish significantly.

Too much of the discussion was about what defines advertising and not about how it can/will benefit the Subscriber. 

Ultimately there is always those who will play the cautious card and go for the 'no' vote which equates with 'no change is good'.

The problem with polls is that typically one 'side' or another engenders more angst or ire and thus attracts more respondents who want to be 'heard'.  The ambivalent are by definition less likely to want to have an input hence that 2%.

It's a fair bet that were the vote a compulsory one the 'don't care' portion would be bigger and thus the results would differ even more....

Evryone speaking up is somehwhat biased towards supporting the coomunity so I can see why people have trouble accepting the bad results.

I voted I don't care but I'll play Devil's advocate..

A small percentage of people will resort to extremes to make their case stronger.

There is a small percentage of people that will take their ball and go home.

There is a small percentage that feels subscriptions should not be necessary and Stardock should be fully sponsoring the site.

When the carrot is dangled that we may get some premium skins in the future for a trade off, some won't bite. Promises are generally empty when it comes to business.

I personally think that it is a road to failure. Without knowing specific numbers involved I can only assume that subscriptions will never be enough to support the site. As the site grows, so does the overhead. This means the site gets more in the hole as time goes. When sponsors aren't enough to support the site, then what? I sort of feel like we are being asked to get aboard a sinking ship.

Actual subscription numbers have never been shared with the public so we have no way to gauge just how much freeloading is going on out there. Some will start new accounts over and over to get around the download cap. It would be interesting to know so we could base our opinions on something with more substance.

I think the silent ones or "lurkers" are the ones to listne to becuase the mopre time I spend in forums around the web, the more I am assuered that people that feel the need to offer their opinion in a forum are most likely uneductaed and shooting from the hip and not the brain. The smart stay silent and laugh at all us morons.


Windowblind reviews haven't been all that great when it comes to the quality of skins in the libraries. I have no clue how to correct that image problem but it will hamper subscription sales if people believe the libraries aren't worth subscribing for.

I have gone way out of my way in the past to support this site and will continue to do so in whatever way I can but I can understand the hesitation some have with changes. Especially when it targets the people that have supported the site for years and years to come.

I doubt they would leave but they may not re-subscribe.
Since I'm Stardock customer, and I already had the only blind in the giveaways that is Vista and WB6 ready, ad free was the main benefit for me to subscribe. Well, that and the fact that this was a charity drive that would help the kids, I figured what the hell, I spend that much for a few beers at the pub, I'll stay at home for a night and subscribe. Now that I'm subscribed until 2010, I'll give it a few years and see how many ads this turns into. If it gets out of hand and they multiply too much, there will be little reason for me to re-subscribe since I will still be a Stardock customer. Now that I think about it, there is another perk I like...the 100 blinds per page is really nice.

I find it hard to believe that Stardock would shut the site down even if it loses money. It would hurt Stardock's sales too greatly for them to shut it down. If this site didn't exist I never would have bought Object Desktop, and if it shuts down, I doubt I would buy it again.
There are not enough sites to take up the slack, as Zubaz thinks there are, and there is no other site that has near the collection of skins that Wincustomize does.
The ship will stay afloat as long as Stardock stays in business.