Rsava wrote:
In the States, that is less than 2 pack of smokes and Chess is MUCH better for you than smokes.
In the city it's less than a single pack of smokes 
bring your memberships down
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Jul 11, 2013
0
#23
Chess.com provides outstanding service for the small price of their membership.
you start with free and then you work up.
Jul 11, 2013
0
#25
As someone who is registered at just about all the world's top chess websites, I can tell you that Chess.com is very moderate about pricing and great in terms of the provided services. Diamond membership is $99/year, iirc. Basically, what are your alternatives? Order a 1h lesson from a good coach? Buy 4 DVDs? 3 books? 1/4 (yes, one fourth) of a decent chess database?
Here you have videos made by pros, chess broadcasts, Chess mentor & Chess Tactics, opening explorer, etc., not to mention many benefits that come free to the audience - articles, blog posts, playing zone, correspondence chess and so on. I have empathy for people who are so poor that even $99 seems like a high price to them. However, Chess.com is a business. They don't make money out of the air. Hence, there has to be a way to monetize their services somehow. And I am glad that the website is doing fine & developing
Jul 11, 2013
0
#26
Rsava wrote:
Roma60 wrote:
Rsava you sound like you have money being a yank but how about the rest of the world where they want to play like india and africa think about them.
I do think about them.
I volunteer with organizations to bring fresh drinking water to places that have none. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
My kids volunteer packing food bags for starving kids around the world. My oldest is currently working on a project to bring a $2500 system in to pack 10,000 bags of ready to cook meals. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
I have also donated months of premium memberships here at Chess.com to others.
Don't give me your garbage about the "poor". As dasjkee94 posted memebrship is free. Paid membership is a luxury. I work hard to see that basic human needs are met. Membership at Chess.com is not a basic human need.
Not everyone can have everything. Thats the way it is. Go live in your utopian world (which when tried has ALWAYS failed throughout history) and let us know how you get along.
lovely little whip you got there, sire
much obliged for what you have do for us poor folks!
yes sir, we must make do with what we get, no need to go askin for mo'
ain't right for a man filling his head with things he sure ain't got money for...
Jul 11, 2013
0
#27
Savage wrote:
It's called supply and demand. Chess.com is not a charity and nobody owes you a free lunch.
It's called a free market, you are allowed to ask for lower prices. The seller has the right to refuse as well.
billyblatt wrote:
Rsava wrote:
Roma60 wrote:
Rsava you sound like you have money being a yank but how about the rest of the world where they want to play like india and africa think about them.
I do think about them.
I volunteer with organizations to bring fresh drinking water to places that have none. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
My kids volunteer packing food bags for starving kids around the world. My oldest is currently working on a project to bring a $2500 system in to pack 10,000 bags of ready to cook meals. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
I have also donated months of premium memberships here at Chess.com to others.
Don't give me your garbage about the "poor". As dasjkee94 posted memebrship is free. Paid membership is a luxury. I work hard to see that basic human needs are met. Membership at Chess.com is not a basic human need.
Not everyone can have everything. Thats the way it is. Go live in your utopian world (which when tried has ALWAYS failed throughout history) and let us know how you get along.
lovely little whip you got there, sire
much obliged for what you have do for us poor folks!
yes sir, we must make do with what we get, no need to go askin for mo'
ain't right for a man filling his head with things he sure ain't got money for...
So witty.
Jul 11, 2013
0
#29
nah, didn't seem to me that way. Didn't seem to be demonstrating that he thought they owed him anything really...a bit childish, but that was it though....
Jul 11, 2013
0
#30
Rsava wrote:
billyblatt wrote:
Rsava wrote:
Roma60 wrote:
Rsava you sound like you have money being a yank but how about the rest of the world where they want to play like india and africa think about them.
I do think about them.
I volunteer with organizations to bring fresh drinking water to places that have none. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
My kids volunteer packing food bags for starving kids around the world. My oldest is currently working on a project to bring a $2500 system in to pack 10,000 bags of ready to cook meals. Hands and feet on the street, physical labor. How about you?
I have also donated months of premium memberships here at Chess.com to others.
Don't give me your garbage about the "poor". As dasjkee94 posted memebrship is free. Paid membership is a luxury. I work hard to see that basic human needs are met. Membership at Chess.com is not a basic human need.
Not everyone can have everything. Thats the way it is. Go live in your utopian world (which when tried has ALWAYS failed throughout history) and let us know how you get along.
lovely little whip you got there, sire
much obliged for what you have do for us poor folks!
yes sir, we must make do with what we get, no need to go askin for mo'
ain't right for a man filling his head with things he sure ain't got money for...
So witty.
no sir just speaking my mind like I see the clear day sir
I never say nothing for show, I'd never try to think i knows more than you sir...
we simple folks keep to our simple ways...no need to go on trying to be someone else now...
we got all we needs....
Jul 11, 2013
0
#31
Savage wrote:
The OP wasn't asking. He was accusing chess.com of being "greedy" - whatever he thinks that means - and wanting to know why they're not lowering prices, as if they owe him an explanation.
I am truly sick of this anti-capitalistic trend in America to equate any successful business model as "greedy." Have Americans become so intellectually vacant that they cannot recognize that this arbitrary and vague notion of "fairness" is, in the final analysis, another form of slavery? Freedom demands that people trade goods and services for each other's mutual benefit. That is the true nature of Capitalism, which has been bastardized and redefined in this Age of Unreason.
Jul 11, 2013
0
#32
OldChessDog wrote:
Savage wrote:
The OP wasn't asking. He was accusing chess.com of being "greedy" - whatever he thinks that means - and wanting to know why they're not lowering prices, as if they owe him an explanation.
I am truly sick of this anti-capitalistic trend in America to equate any successful business model as "greedy." Have Americans become so intellectually vacant that they cannot recognize that this arbitrary and vague notion of "fairness" is, in the final analysis, another form of slavery? Freedom demands that people trade goods and services for each other's mutual benefit. That is the true nature of Capitalism, which has been bastardized and redefined in this Age of Unreason.
funny.
billyblatt wrote:
lovely little whip you got there, sire
much obliged for what you have do for us poor folks!
yes sir, we must make do with what we get, no need to go askin for mo'
ain't right for a man filling his head with things he sure ain't got money for...
So witty.
no sir just speaking my mind like I see the clear day sir
I never say nothing for show, I'd never try to think i knows more than you sir...
we simple folks keep to our simple ways...no need to go on trying to be someone else now...
we got all we needs....
Typical idealistic, underage garbage. When you get some real world experience under your belt (like running a multi million dollar business or being on the management staff of a close to $1 billion a year corporation) come back and we'll talk.
Until then you are just an ignorant person who doesn't understand the real world.
Nice try with your witty diatribe though. You might want to stop being so racist.
OldChessDog wrote:
I am truly sick of this anti-capitalistic trend in America to equate any successful business model as "greedy." Have Americans become so intellectually vacant that they cannot recognize that this arbitrary and vague notion of "fairness" is, in the final analysis, another form of slavery? (...)
The problem here is not that fairness does not exist. (It does, though not under the form of a blackboard writing down the reasonable prices of all things)
The problem is that whatever the price of a membership would be, someone will complain it is too much. If it was $0.01 for a lifelong membership, some people would say it is "unfair" to charge even a litle bit.
Jul 11, 2013
0
#35
Rsava wrote:
billyblatt wrote:
lovely little whip you got there, sire
much obliged for what you have do for us poor folks!
yes sir, we must make do with what we get, no need to go askin for mo'
ain't right for a man filling his head with things he sure ain't got money for...
So witty.
no sir just speaking my mind like I see the clear day sir
I never say nothing for show, I'd never try to think i knows more than you sir...
we simple folks keep to our simple ways...no need to go on trying to be someone else now...
we got all we needs....
Typical idealistic, underage garbage. When you get some real world experience under your belt (like running a multi million dollar business or being on the management staff of a close to $1 billion a year corporation) come back and we'll talk.
Until then you are just an ignorant person who doesn't understand the real world.
Nice try with your witty diatribe though. You might want to stop being so racist.
oh don't mind me sir....i just likes to prattle on about this and that ....that all...never meant you no offence there ....
I got this from my folks up yonder, they sure like their talking....
don't take no notice of me sir...you keep carrying on your way....
I'm sure you know every thing there is to know about the world and its ways....
We are mighty lucky to have folks like you up there to keep things running...thats for sure...mighty lucky....
don't know where we would be without your kindness sir....
Savage wrote:
It's called supply and demand. Chess.com is not a charity and nobody owes you a free lunch.
Actually in this case there is no supply and demand because chess.com can hand out as many memberships as it wants without having to worry about running out.
Hypothetically if it costs two thousand dollars (nice even number) to run this site and there is no money comming in from advertisment, then at $50 per membership there might be 500 costemers then chess.com will make $25,000- $2000= 23,000bucks. however if chess.com increses its prices to $100 then there might be 300 costomers (it could be any number of costomers, but my guess is most the people looking to buy this product can afford to pay a little more for a yearly membership.) so $30,000 - $2000=27,000 dollars. clearly chess.com would be smartest to go with the second option. however if chess.com gets the briliant Idea of pricing the memberships at $200 there will only be 100 costmers left. so $20,000-$2000(remember the cost of running the site!)=$18,000!
in this example chess.com would have to be stupid not to price there membership at $100 each as it brings in the most profit
This is how the prices are chosen to the best of my understanding.
hope it helped
Jul 11, 2013
0
#37
Erik already stated what i wanted to say:
"we haven't updated our prices in YEARS and with inflation... it's going down. "
erik wrote:
interesting post! thanks for sharing your thoughts.
prices are actually going down - we haven't updated our prices in YEARS and with inflation... it's going down.
if we could perfectly track users by country, we would offer lower prices in developing countries. but the bigger issue is that most/many people in those countries do not even have mechanisms to pay for online services. so they end up paying with their eyeballs (ads), which frankly, doesn't amount to much for Chess.com.
if it weren't for memberships, we'd be sunk! :)
thanks for your support!
(here is an article i wrote a long time ago on the subject: http://www.chess.com/news/the-cost-of-enjoying-chess )
Agreed. I was going to mention this earleir. It's the same principle as earning $25 an hour in the 90s and earning $20 in 2013, but despite the number being the same the real world wages have gone down, so in practical terms Mr.X gets a pay cut as his salary isn't keeping up with inflation.
Anyway, the USCF charges around $50 for a yearly membership, while you can't play chess as often OTB obviously you have games at slower time controls and when you cite your rating people will take you seriously.
Why do people on here take IM Pfren or NM Rob seriously? Because their FIDE credentials were varified.
Shenkov wrote:
A "decent" database will cost less than 99 dollars.. Mega Database 2013 goes for only 65 and has 4 1/2 million games.
And it costs money to upgrade every year too. I got the starter package though.
interesting post! thanks for sharing your thoughts.
prices are actually going down - we haven't updated our prices in YEARS and with inflation... it's going down.
if we could perfectly track users by country, we would offer lower prices in developing countries. but the bigger issue is that most/many people in those countries do not even have mechanisms to pay for online services. so they end up paying with their eyeballs (ads), which frankly, doesn't amount to much for Chess.com.
if it weren't for memberships, we'd be sunk! :)
thanks for your support!
(here is an article i wrote a long time ago on the subject: http://www.chess.com/news/the-cost-of-enjoying-chess )