OCCUPY GAIA :: SAY NO TO BUYING GC

[Lord Darkstarr]

RikoSeryuji

Meh, I don't think I ever bought GC or was ever interested in it...
Me and a lot of my friends don't really care about items so the prices don't matter to us, however this is still a serious problem to us cause it threatens the community as a whole.

If Gaia is hurting for money they need to say so, and if its true instead of pushing people to buy GC and causing prices to get this inflated they could do what a lot of other sites do and ask for donations from people. The Gaia community's important enough to me that I would contribute if I knew it was in trouble. But right now this all looks like a blatant cash grab and I'm going to continue my usual routine of ignoring anything that has to do with spending actual cash on the site.

I don't think it's so much Gaia Interactive needing operating capital as it is greed on the part of the new CEO. I agree with you in that if Gaia needed cash, I'd chip in a few bucks to help out because that's all I have to spare, but not to a site that doesn't do anything to earn it, as Gaia is doing right now. I need my money a LOT more than some rich b*****d does, especially now!

[Kara Winters]

Lord Darkstarr

I don't think it's so much Gaia Interactive needing operating capital as it is greed on the part of the new CEO. I agree with you in that if Gaia needed cash, I'd chip in a few bucks to help out because that's all I have to spare, but not to a site that doesn't do anything to earn it, as Gaia is doing right now. I need my money a LOT more than some rich b*****d does, especially now!

I think the saddest part about the whole, whether or not Gaia needs money or not situation is, the focus has been on the CEO. Since it's under his guidance this has been happening (at least one would assume).

It leaves out all the people under him, the people who have been laid off or fired, the people who still work there. I feel really sorry for the people who work there, because they must know how bad it's getting and it must be like an axe over their heads because they're just waiting for it to fall. Never mind the fact I feel like someone has been working the artists to death as of late.

[Sheshira]

Lord Darkstarr

RikoSeryuji

Meh, I don't think I ever bought GC or was ever interested in it...
Me and a lot of my friends don't really care about items so the prices don't matter to us, however this is still a serious problem to us cause it threatens the community as a whole.

If Gaia is hurting for money they need to say so, and if its true instead of pushing people to buy GC and causing prices to get this inflated they could do what a lot of other sites do and ask for donations from people. The Gaia community's important enough to me that I would contribute if I knew it was in trouble. But right now this all looks like a blatant cash grab and I'm going to continue my usual routine of ignoring anything that has to do with spending actual cash on the site.

I don't think it's so much Gaia Interactive needing operating capital as it is greed on the part of the new CEO. I agree with you in that if Gaia needed cash, I'd chip in a few bucks to help out because that's all I have to spare, but not to a site that doesn't do anything to earn it, as Gaia is doing right now. I need my money a LOT more than some rich b*****d does, especially now!

The problem I'm having is that Gaia wasn't really ever in the red but in the first ten years they didn't have a long term sustainable business. So I'm guessing they saw that this CEO had his marketing background and he sold the bells and whistles of how they'd make back the profit they could have been earning for the past ten years, and then more.

Only that his methods are the typical aggressive marketing that isn't sustainable. It's sort of like how Sears pushes their credit so much but have neglected to keep up their store appearances, the quality of their items etc that they can't rely on credit alone. Even if it makes them more money in the long run, if the rest of the store is crap it won't matter.

I do think Gaia needs to dial back the aggressiveness. Obviously getting rid of the gold generators, letting that die out (as the generators are being used up) have good gold sinks in place (like the Gambino Outfitters RIG was great, have one for each store, have an alchemy RIG, have a gold sink event like SOS etc) and then things should normalize. The cash shop prices need to drop dramatically. They're crazy expensive.

It'd also help that Gaia be wiser with their money. Developing their own games (and less to freeium mobile games for one) is one way, investing in other companies, etc

[Aryeec]

I logged into Gaia for the first time in about a year yesterday and noticed how horrid the inflation has become. Then I learned of gold generators, so I took one for the team and dropped the $25 to get enough GC for the 100-pack of Make It Rain that was just released. For the sake of Gaia commerce, I will sit on this gold and never buy another item from the GC shop. The amounts these things put out is frackin' ridiculous!!! What is this crap!!!!!

[Faraam Knight]

So, am I the only one waiting for this thing to take off and it get to the point where barely anybody is buying anything from the GC and instead posting in the forums only to have them lock all forums and then release a "Forum Pass" that we all have to pay one hundred gaia cash to use?

Because they can always sink lower than this.

[MewMewSun]

The Sandman Slim

So, am I the only one waiting for this thing to take off and it get to the point where barely anybody is buying anything from the GC and instead posting in the forums only to have them lock all forums and then release a "Forum Pass" that we all have to pay one hundred gaia cash to use?

Because they can always sink lower than this.

Wow, this most likely won't happen but it is a scary idea.
Hmm, not many people are posting in the forums for them to get the amount of money wanted. If this idea was put into place that is....

[Kara Winters]

The Sandman Slim

So, am I the only one waiting for this thing to take off and it get to the point where barely anybody is buying anything from the GC and instead posting in the forums only to have them lock all forums and then release a "Forum Pass" that we all have to pay one hundred gaia cash to use?

Because they can always sink lower than this.

As cynical as I am about Gaia, we all know that would never happen, because if it happened it might as well be dead.

Forums are a dime a dozen and in Gaia's heyday it's existence spawned a lot of sites similar in built, which still exist today. Couple this with the fact Gaia has nothing right now that users can't get in bits and pieces in other places, there's no point in making a forum fee.

There would be nothing to gain from it.

[illumi zaoldyek]

The Sandman Slim

So, am I the only one waiting for this thing to take off and it get to the point where barely anybody is buying anything from the GC and instead posting in the forums only to have them lock all forums and then release a "Forum Pass" that we all have to pay one hundred gaia cash to use?

Because they can always sink lower than this.

I have to say I'm waiting for something a little more spectacular than that, like ka-booom. Then I can have closure about Gaia. Things have become so bad that to be honest I'd sooner pay to see Gaia finally "return to the lifestream" than pay for a CS item or GC privilege. I'd only feel sorry for the users of course, but I don't think this is really Gaia anymore, in fact it is corrupting and mocking the good memory of Gaia. Like a zombie - and who would want to keep staring at the zombie of a loved one?

You're so right, if there's one thing Gaia has showed is that there is always margin to sink lower. Things like a forum pass and other such outrageous ideas are more likely to be employed nearer to that looming end, like, you know, the swan song of Gaia's cash register. I definitely don't think monetizing just about anything is beyond them... it may very well be that nothing is beyond them.

I saw here on Gaia and offsite people discussing about Goldemort and his chosen right-hand-man, they were saying one of them or both move from company to company after milking each one dry of revenue potential. It would be companies in the red, but which still have potential to generate a boost of profit before they're done. However, the process culminates with the company's destruction. I don't know where the people discussing it obtained the information (linked in, perhaps?) and I didn't care enough anymore to look for this kind of stuff myself, but my gut feeling is that it must be true, and it would make perfect sense.
And if that is true, then I'd rather it were all over sooner than later, instead of dragging on while some users - and many must be young - still sink their money here. I no longer think Gaia will ever again be the awesome and unique place it used to be, and I don't believe this has "legs to walk" very further either.

[Taerar Licorne]

I just wish there was a way to turn off the damn announcements. I'm counting at least 10-15 per day now that are about nothing but Gaia Cash.

[Lord Darkstarr]

Sheshira

Lord Darkstarr

I don't think it's so much Gaia Interactive needing operating capital as it is greed on the part of the new CEO. I agree with you in that if Gaia needed cash, I'd chip in a few bucks to help out because that's all I have to spare, but not to a site that doesn't do anything to earn it, as Gaia is doing right now. I need my money a LOT more than some rich b*****d does, especially now!

The problem I'm having is that Gaia wasn't really ever in the red but in the first ten years they didn't have a long term sustainable business. So I'm guessing they saw that this CEO had his marketing background and he sold the bells and whistles of how they'd make back the profit they could have been earning for the past ten years, and then more.

Only that his methods are the typical aggressive marketing that isn't sustainable. It's sort of like how Sears pushes their credit so much but have neglected to keep up their store appearances, the quality of their items etc that they can't rely on credit alone. Even if it makes them more money in the long run, if the rest of the store is crap it won't matter.

I do think Gaia needs to dial back the aggressiveness. Obviously getting rid of the gold generators, letting that die out (as the generators are being used up) have good gold sinks in place (like the Gambino Outfitters RIG was great, have one for each store, have an alchemy RIG, have a gold sink event like SOS etc) and then things should normalize. The cash shop prices need to drop dramatically. They're crazy expensive.

It'd also help that Gaia be wiser with their money. Developing their own games (and less to freeium mobile games for one) is one way, investing in other companies, etc

Of course they need to back off on the cash gouging! It makes them look greedy, which drives people off the site because they obviously don't need that much money, and are not showing that they're doing anything to earn it by letting features such as zOMG pretty much go to pot, which is bad business practice because the features that drew people like us here in the first place are being neglected, thus not providing incentives for us to stay.

[Sheshira]

Lord Darkstarr

Sheshira

Lord Darkstarr

I don't think it's so much Gaia Interactive needing operating capital as it is greed on the part of the new CEO. I agree with you in that if Gaia needed cash, I'd chip in a few bucks to help out because that's all I have to spare, but not to a site that doesn't do anything to earn it, as Gaia is doing right now. I need my money a LOT more than some rich b*****d does, especially now!

The problem I'm having is that Gaia wasn't really ever in the red but in the first ten years they didn't have a long term sustainable business. So I'm guessing they saw that this CEO had his marketing background and he sold the bells and whistles of how they'd make back the profit they could have been earning for the past ten years, and then more.

Only that his methods are the typical aggressive marketing that isn't sustainable. It's sort of like how Sears pushes their credit so much but have neglected to keep up their store appearances, the quality of their items etc that they can't rely on credit alone. Even if it makes them more money in the long run, if the rest of the store is crap it won't matter.

I do think Gaia needs to dial back the aggressiveness. Obviously getting rid of the gold generators, letting that die out (as the generators are being used up) have good gold sinks in place (like the Gambino Outfitters RIG was great, have one for each store, have an alchemy RIG, have a gold sink event like SOS etc) and then things should normalize. The cash shop prices need to drop dramatically. They're crazy expensive.

It'd also help that Gaia be wiser with their money. Developing their own games (and less to freeium mobile games for one) is one way, investing in other companies, etc

Of course they need to back off on the cash gouging! It makes them look greedy, which drives people off the site because they obviously don't need that much money, and are not showing that they're doing anything to earn it by letting features such as zOMG pretty much go to pot, which is bad business practice because the features that drew people like us here in the first place are being neglected, thus not providing incentives for us to stay.

If they actually needed the money I'd question whether or not they have the business sense to stay afloat especially if they are choosing to do this. I know profit margins are important to maintain but they're so blindsided by the "windfall" of money that they're not realizing that it's going to dry up sooner than had they been diligently earning their money.

I hope that the CEO moves on (they do have a short shelf-life) and that Gaia can learn from the CEO on what not to do, or at least adapt some strategies without ruining their reputation, service etc.

[Zahnweh Zombie]

I was a long-time Gaian back in 2004, I first joined this site purely by luck and never heard about it before.
I joined it, started out as a crappy RPer, and told my friends and family about it because I thought the site would interest them.
I made friends, gotten better at my RPing, and it even spread itself into how I write stories today.
I've had hiatuses due to my interests coming and going, but I always leave Gaiaonline in my links just in case.

I remember buying monthly collectables with real money, because back then they were worth more in terms of meaning and significance.
Even now, I have my Cloud which is the only item I refuse to get rid of because my mother bought it for me on my birthday.

Things have changed though... so much from when I last was on here.
Every day, I come on to see 10 announcements about GC deals, spamming it's own announcement thread with deals that are "too good to pass up" and Chance items that will make you rich.
All of these feel like nothing more than scams and junk mail that fill our proverbial mailbox (and literal one if you are unfortunate enough to have signed up for their update e-mails).

I love this site, but I'm disappointed with it's change in attitude, treating us as mere consumer whores.
I'm fed up with Gaia Cash, Gaia Gold (which is now barely worth anything these days), and I'm sick of Gaia in general.

I keep coming on here hoping to find the hook that will pull me back in, but instead I find reasons why I should stay away.

[heyday_534]

Zahnweh Zombie

I was a long-time Gaian back in 2004, I first joined this site purely by luck and never heard about it before.
I joined it, started out as a crappy RPer, and told my friends and family about it because I thought the site would interest them.
I made friends, gotten better at my RPing, and it even spread itself into how I write stories today.
I've had hiatuses due to my interests coming and going, but I always leave Gaiaonline in my links just in case.

I remember buying monthly collectables with real money, because back then they were worth more in terms of meaning and significance.
Even now, I have my Cloud which is the only item I refuse to get rid of because my mother bought it for me on my birthday.

Things have changed though... so much from when I last was on here.
Every day, I come on to see 10 announcements about GC deals, spamming it's own announcement thread with deals that are "too good to pass up" and Chance items that will make you rich.
All of these feel like nothing more than scams and junk mail that fill our proverbial mailbox (and literal one if you are unfortunate enough to have signed up for their update e-mails).

I love this site, but I'm disappointed with it's change in attitude, treating us as mere consumer whores.
I'm fed up with Gaia Cash, Gaia Gold (which is now barely worth anything these days), and I'm sick of Gaia in general.

I keep coming on here hoping to find the hook that will pull me back in, but instead I find reasons why I should stay away.

This is exactly how I feel.

[heyday_534]

Generally I have simply floated around in the backgrounds of this site, never really talking to anyone but doing my best to leave real replys in the aquarium bottle.

Things have changed that even I have noticed, but it was only today that I found out from an announcement from Teh Savior via the B.O.O. guild that everyone else is feeling the same way I am about these GC adds/announcements.

Then, I discovered the pattern I was noticing in the market place was something everyone was unhappy about. I didn't even realize that there was a problem, I thought I was just getting lucky with the prices I was able to sell some items at. I survived on this site with an avg of about 15,000 gold a year (often much less then that, but sometimes more and then I would buy some things). Since the beginning of this year I have come close to 400,000. It did not even occur to me that this was a result of inflation, but now that I've read what other people have said I realize that that must be it, because really the items I sold shouldn't have gotten to those prices.

I've been on this site since 2007, and I thought gaia was just having a strange rough patch and that soon the events and free items from book and movie previews were going to come back.
I haven't thrown virtual popcorn at a movie screen in a long time! (I really do miss that).


TL: DR I have never bought CG and I never will. And now I am sad as I come to the realization that the things I loved about this site might never come back.