By randomwaltz.
I remember this sort of thing happening at deviantART some years ago. People had to pay to take advantage of all the site's features, but when they provided feedback to the administration, they were treated like taskmasters. "But we work so hard!" was the cry of the devs. These are the growing pains experienced by every site that transitions from free to pay-to-play or subscription services. The staff can't get used to the fact that they are no longer just doing people favors, but providing a service for a fee. And unless your customers are deceased, your service is sure to be critiqued at some point.
"Emotional blackmail" is a pretty good way to describe what's going on, actually. We're expected to be satisfied with the site just because the staff works hard, expected to buy stuff because Gaia needs the money. How is it our responsibility to solve the problem of Gaia's need for money by buying things we don't want? Many small businesses need money, but it's not the customer's responsibilty to buy their subpar products to keep them afloat. The onus lies on the business owner to come up with something people will buy at a price that covers production and labor. Otherwise, the business fails; no customer should feel obligated to lament this.
Unfortunately, we do not physically own the things we've paid Gaia for, since Gaia itself stores them. Imagine if the bookstore from which you purchased your entire collection shut down, and every book on your shelf simply disappeared.
Just another reason I find it baffling that Gaia would expect us to buy anything we did not absolutely love. The minute it goes under, we lose it-- all of it. Feedback, even angry feedback, is something the staff has got to get used to.
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Random Junk
What the title says.
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