Quote:
Originally Posted by RichardCoulter
It was very successful when James owned it.
I know that factors like the increased use of social networking sites have played a part, but it does seem to have been badly run since being sold.
By this I mean intrusive ads, click bait, a focus on showbiz/celebrity rubbish, bizarre and inconsistent moderating decisions eg someone was suspended for using the term "blacklegs" to describe a group of people breaking a strike. Apparently, this was 'racist' because one of them was of mixed race!!!
|
The problem with someone buying it is, the money they have tied up in it needs to pay back somehow. Hence the pressure to increase traffic and get more clicks on more ads.
Back in the early days the DS forums were not so very different than here. DS obviously had a broader subject matter and appeal and grew larger than we did. But we have always been a privately owned site run because we just want to do it basically .... we advertise to cover costs but we have no investments to repay and no staff wages. So as social media has put old fashioned bulletin boards under pressure they have had further to fall and more to lose, and we have been able to sustain (modestly) lower visitor numbers without cutting back on what matters, namely your daily dose of forum banter.
