Originally Posted by Egaladeist
Come now JPnyc...I realize you have to walk the corporate line...you're an employee of the company and an administrator of their forums...but you know how ridiculous it is and how hypocritical it is for a for-profit corporation to ask for people to ' donate ' to the company's welfare.
For one thing the offer of $50 is a ' recent ' development caused primarily through this thread and it only applies to the few that get awarded it...if 100 people submit tutorials in the stated time frame only one gets the $50...the rest get squat.
It amazes me how it almost seems like ' internet corporations ' expect to get contributions for free and people are actually stupid enough to go along with it thinking it's OK. That's like Ford opening up a Plant in Detroit asking Detroitonians to come and donate their time, resources, and knowledge for free while it keeps all the profit.
Yes...the revenue is distributed among staff, shareholders, etc...but that's also true of every business that trades on the market.,,it has nothing to do with asking for people to donate ' free ' services.
Please...what does paying fair market value have to do with " forced to work within, in a corporate structure "? Having a corporate structure does not in any way prevent the corporation from paying ' fair market value '.
That would be impossible for me to say with any certainty unless I could determine from your books how much this site's revenue is dependent upon member-driven content vs other factors. If as you say the content drives the site traffic not, for instance, corporate promotions or advertising for the site, then $50 is not enough.
I will however grant you that it is NOT your responsibility to offer anything...it is the contributors responsibility to evaluate how much they think their time and effort is worth and ensure that they get it. If someone spends 3 hours on a tutorial it is up to them to determine it's worth. And if you're not willing to pay then they should go elsewhere.
This is a business JupMed is running...and like any business if you want something you should pay for it...but...if people are willing to pony it up for free so that the corporate wallets can get fatter at no cost to them...
well...what can you really say to that.
At any rate...a multi-million dollar corporation cannot justify getting and or expecting free donated content...it is NOT a charity...
but...P.T.Barnum would be proud. ;)