[uday]

We're toying with a limited run of non-bridge, non-bbo advertisement ads. How do you feel about this?

[inquiry]

Seems to be a no-brainer.. when I watch football on TV (for free), I have to "suffer" through the commercials. A banner add for amazon or aol or microsoft, or beck's beer, wouldn't bother me at all..

Ben

[hrothgar]

Hi Uday,

I don't have a problem with BBO serving whatever they like in the way of ads in the lobby, regardless of the type of content.

In a simailr fashion, I would have problems with any system designed to serve adds while playing hands.

[paulhar]

hrothgar, on Jul 28 2004, 01:38 PM, said:

Hi Uday,

I don't have a problem with BBO serving whatever they like in the way of ads in the lobby, regardless of the type of content.

In a simailr fashion, I would have problems with any system designed to serve adds while playing hands.

You would have a problem making your contract on the lead of the King of Beers?

[luis]

Yippie!

"This slam was brought to you by BudWeiser the Slam Beer...."

[inquiry]

hrothgar, on Jul 28 2004, 02:38 PM, said:

Hi Uday,

I don't have a problem with BBO serving whatever they like in the way of ads in the lobby, regardless of the type of content.

In a simailr fashion, I would have problems with any system designed to serve adds while playing hands.

Name of soemthing on the back of the cards would be ok by me (imagine "Coke can" designed card backs insead of "bridge base"). So the blanket nothing in the game room is wrong, but it will have to be very passive.

The banner ads in the lobby and like is fine. Maybe name the rooms after sponseors.. "the microsoft main game room" the "pepsi team game lobby", the "nextel chat rooms"... Those would be fine, and maybe when first enter the room you get a manditory little ad of some type.. but then you are in and not bugged again...

Even see if one of these room sponsors would sponsor a large tournment (many talbe one day event, or over time with result tracking) with some kind of corporate prize..




Ben

[jtfanclub]

Banner ads good! Popup ads bad!

And no adds for beer or girlie sites please. My keyboard doesn't work right when I drool on it.

[paulhar]

And, of course, the tournaments could be named by sponsors too. Everybody would want to sponsor Mirjam's tourneys, every glamoured member would receive message - Congratulations - uday and Inquiry won the Doritos Glamoured!

The ace of spades could have a sponsor too.

You could even go one step further and randomly assign sponsors to each table in the Main Bridge Club, instead of naming it after the table opener.

"Please - need 2 nice opponents at table Oscar Mayer!"

You guys have programmed an awesome site and deserve to make at least as much as your average programmer!

[1eyedjack]

I am in favour in principle, but I do think that it depends to some degree on how the ads appear, ie how intrusive they are etc.

The more intrusive, the greater the revenue per ad, but the greater the irritation that they cause. If I am in the middle of a winkle squeeze and a popup suddenly obscures the hand in order to suggest the benefits of a time-share appartment in Tenerife, then I might get a bit pissed off, even if I can click on Cancel to get back to the hand.

Of course you would never consider going to that extreme, but it takes an extreme to emphasise a point.

[bambi1]

And we have to make sure the ads don't give away anyting. If you are in the middle of a winkle squeeze, and an ad appears for Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice from Florida, it could be a hint to your opps!

[Deanrover]

Good idea. You want to ask online Poker sites to advertise. I would suggest that BBO contains a high % of potential users, and they would be willing to pay lots of money.

Also it mind bring some much needed color to BBO, whose scheme is a tad dull. e.g. the current "Bridge Base" cards are rather unsightly. I'd much rather see a coke can on the back of it. Actually, best would be to have advertisements from www.playboy.com on the back, though this would likely be too distracting from the bridge!

[ng:)]

Ok, if BBO remains free.

Gabor

[DenisO]

No Problem here - Hope you can get big payers - I'm sure extra cash will benefit us all.

Deniso

[bearmum]

ng:), on Jul 29 2004, 12:40 PM, said:

Ok, if BBO remains free.

Gabor

and hopefully IF you get money from ads SOME of the tourneys which USED to be free will revert to free again --- since PAY tourneys have come in I find it almost impossible (due to the time zone I am in I admit) to find a FREE tourney to play in at a time I am able to be online

BUT I would HATE popup[ads -- or those you have to click on to get rid of - banner ads are OK I can ignore THEM

[vang]

[quote name='inquiry' date='Jul 28 2004, 01:46 PM'] [quote name='hrothgar' date='Jul 28 2004, 02:38 PM'] Hi Uday,

Maybe name the rooms after sponseors.. "the microsoft main game room" [/quote]
disguisting

[JRG]

I understand I'm part of a minority. I also understand that BBI needs to make some money from BBO. I appreciate BBO being a free site.

Having said that, I'm one of those people who really, really, hates advertisements. Here are a couple of examples (you can draw your own inferences as to their relevance to a money-making model):

1) I used to use the Eudora Pro e-mail program (at first on a Mac and then on a PC) when one had to buy it. Then they started distributing it free (paid for by displaying ads). You could still pay for it, in which case the ads were suppressed. YES, I continued to pay for it. [Hate those ads].

2) Similar - I paid for the Opera web browser.

3) I watch much less television than appears to be the average (this is a subjective assessment, I could be wrong). It's not just the quality of the programming (at the risk of offending some people, I really cannot understand why people watch inane game shows) that stops me -- there are some programs I have really enjoyed. I simply cannot stand being brainwashed by the constant stream of advertisements. [For what it is worth, I probably watch about an hour a week of television. It would be less, but there are a couple of reasonably enjoyable shows that I watch with my wife.]

[inquiry]

JRG, on Jul 29 2004, 10:54 AM, said:

I understand I'm part of a minority.

Hii.

I think the current ads are fine. The ACBL tournent banner in the play bridge lobby is surely not a problem. If the back of the playing cards had a company logo or name (coke can design, or nike swoosh), that would be harly a problem. If The main lobby became named.. The MSN main lobby, that would hardly cause a problem.

On could imagine helpful ads.. say a find a partner room, where people pay a dime a week, or a quater a month or a dollar one time.. something like that to list themeelves as needign a partner and write waht they play. Sure we have a find a partner here, but it is seldom used. That is a type of ad...

What aobut a find a team game room. For people who can arrange t heir own game, fine, no need for the charge or room For others, a room where you go go and find a listiing of online singles, partnershps, and etire teamss, looking to set up a teamgame. Charge the people who go on the list some nominal fee (a dime maybe).

Adds when you first log in... instead of seeing the Bridgebase graphic when you click the BridgeView program, you see something that advertises some product, and w hile the program loads, the add stays visiuble (just as the bridgebase logo does now_.

I think we can all object to porn ads,viargra ads, popup ads (popup blockers take care of theat anyway), Thisse other ideas are hardly intrusive.

BTW, I haven't watched ANY TV in last 3 weeks.

Ben

[Trpltrbl]

Good idea, about time you guys get some money for all the work you do.

Mike

[Deanrover]

JRG, on Jul 29 2004, 02:54 PM, said:

I understand I'm part of a minority. I also understand that BBI needs to make some money from BBO. I appreciate BBO being a free site.

Having said that, I'm one of those people who really, really, hates advertisements. Here are a couple of examples (you can draw  your own inferences as to their relevance to a money-making model):

1) I used to use the Eudora Pro e-mail program (at first on a Mac and then on a PC) when one had to buy it. Then they started distributing it free (paid for by displaying ads). You could still pay for it, in which case the ads were suppressed. YES, I continued to pay for it. [Hate those ads].

2) Similar - I paid for the Opera web browser.

3) I watch much less television than appears to be the average (this is a subjective assessment, I could be wrong). It's not just the quality of the programming (at the risk of offending some people, I really cannot understand why people watch inane game shows) that stops me -- there are some programs I have really enjoyed. I simply cannot stand being brainwashed by the constant stream of advertisements. [For what it is worth, I probably watch about an hour a week of television. It would be less, but there are a couple of reasonably enjoyable shows that I watch with my wife.]

Hopefully the bridge ads will be very intrusive. I also don't think many people will be as strongly anti-adverts as you. Two questions

i) Would you likely use BBO less/ leave BBO?
ii) If we offered the alternative of an ad-free BBO for x$ per annum would you take this up?

[rona_]

Deanrover, on Aug 1 2004, 03:48 PM, said:

[ Two questions

i) Would you likely use BBO less/ leave BBO?
ii) If we offered the alternative of an ad-free BBO for x$ per annum would you take this up?

Just one question. Who is We? Thanks.