Would You Join A Subscription Based EMTBravo?

[FFLieu 70]

Not unless there was complete transparency regarding how the subscription fees were being used, ie. for the direct operating overhead costs and not for the sole purpose of adding a few extra scheckels to some pockets.

[2627 67]

of course. should be yearly, not monthly. what bookkeeping headaches...... what fee? I'm open.... joe.

[xfirefighter484x 234]

Not unless there was complete transparency regarding how the subscription fees were being used, ie. for the direct operating overhead costs and not for the sole purpose of adding a few extra scheckels to some pockets.

This should be without saying. EMTBravo has never been a for-profit before, most of it out-of-pocket, why should people think different now?

of course. should be yearly, not monthly. what bookkeeping headaches...... what fee? I'm open.... joe.

People should/could be given the choice, with different membership "packages".

[IzzyEng4 427]

I'll pay a subscription..............

Even if it is with GUM!!!!

[JBE 328]

I'm with the Lieu, I would pay, but would like to know what it's going to. Secondly, since I don't care for PayPal, I would like to have somewhere to mail the check to and who to write it out to. That's it.

[hudson144 150]

most certainly!

[jack10562 414]

Just so everyone gets an idea of what it costs, just the server {computer} that hosts the Bravo sites alone is almost $300 a month. This is actually a bargain!

That is the current base cost and does not include software maintenance, updates, or troubleshooting problems. Those incidents are extra, billable on an hourly basis.

Excess bandwidth charges can add more if the site exceeds traffic thresholds.

The software that runs the sites is not owned but licensed and that costs even more every year.

Given the site activity and existing software, a less expensive hosting alternative doesn't make any sense, since the quality of the site is dependent on the server, moving to a cheaper option would harm the site experience with much slower page response times and with less features.

QOS, or up-time, is also a HUGE factor. Having a reliable site that is practically always available 24/7 is not a luxury.

A member subscription model to pay for it all is only one of the things we're looking into.

[SECTMB 612]

Yes

[jr51070 7]

Yes, I would pay a fee to help cover costs to keep this great site running.

[PCFD ENG58 1,085]

YES ,10 or 15 bucks a year will be fine ! What a bargin!

[WHFD318 17]

I'm in. Sounds like a very reasonable price!

[AndyC3J 190]

I'd definitely pay. Don't know if $25 is necessary or not.....$5-10 should cover it easily if enough members agreed to the subscription idea. But, if that's what it takes, I'm in!

[firesleuth 0]

I'm in for a "paid" membership. I also agree that some financial accountability is a good idea. Not because of any suspicion of malfeasance but because it is a good idea and the right thing to do. Thinking ahead, what if some accusations were made? Transparency right from the start would head off any suspicions and would easily settle any questions. Another thought; I have no idea what it takes to operate, support, maintain a website like this and it would be enlightening to learn at least the expenses involved. I think this information would make me and others take this great website less for granted and more willing to kick in the $$ it takes to keep it alive and well.

Tom

[SRS131EMTFF 471]

Another thing to consider is all 11,000+ members are not going to agree to pay potentially limiting the bandwidth and processing power needed driving down the cost per member potentially.

[jack10562 414]

I listed some of the general site expenses earlier, it's probably close to $5,000 a year to operate the Bravo sites including some contingencies.

Seth never made a dime for his efforts in 7 years of running EMTBravo. On the contrary, he's spent thousands of his own dollars maintaining this site. Now he can no longer afford to "go south" to pay the bills.

And so, just what is the big deal if there was a surplus, after all was said and done?

If he makes a few bucks after paying the bills, so what?

[Mark Z 18]

I listed some of the general site expenses earlier, it's probably close to $5,000 a year to operate the Bravo sites including some contingencies.

Seth never made a dime for his efforts in 7 years of running EMTBravo. On the contrary, he's spent thousands of his own dollars maintaining this site. Now he can no longer afford to "go south" to pay the bills.

And so, just what is the big deal if there was a surplus, after all was said and done?

If he makes a few bucks after paying the bills, so what?

I get a great deal of enjoyment out of emtbravo and have no problem with Seth making money off of this site.

[TCD0415 26]

I would be willing to pay a fee $10 - $20 a year.

Just out of curiosity. Lets do a little math.... How many actual "Posting Members" have been on here lately, say in the last 12 months? You cant really go by "all members" some who might have signed up a while back and never showed up again.

Take the active posters and divide by the operational costs (give or take) and that might give you a starting point as to what to ask rather than asking what one would pay.

And regarding your comment "And so, just what is the big deal if there was a surplus, after all was said and done? If he makes a few bucks after paying the bills, so what?"

In my opinion, I think you might want to rethink that one unless you are looking to submarine this whole effort............. The whole stance of this site was a Not-For Profit thing, Skills Transfer,,, Blah Blah as it should be. But something to profit from? I may be wrong, but I dont believe that is Seth's intention.

Anyone ?

Edited October 22, 2010 by TCD0415

[yanks4ever1320 6]

Im in I'll pay

[xfirefighter484x 234]

I'm in for a "paid" membership. I also agree that some financial accountability is a good idea. Not because of any suspicion of malfeasance but because it is a good idea and the right thing to do. Thinking ahead, what if some accusations were made? Transparency right from the start would head off any suspicions and would easily settle any questions. Another thought; I have no idea what it takes to operate, support, maintain a website like this and it would be enlightening to learn at least the expenses involved. I think this information would make me and others take this great website less for granted and more willing to kick in the $$ it takes to keep it alive and well.

Tom

As far as the transparency issue, the Donation Tracker has been up and visible for a long time now, and no one here has ever had an issue with posting costs affiliated, and amount of income the site has raised, so I think we've already set a pretty good precedent that I don't think anyone can legitimately claim otherwise.

[pasobuff 38]

added my vote of 'yes'.....

Also, if the site was able to be a legal not-for-profit (if that is where Seth wants to go with it) - the membership subscription would be a write off also....

If this does go through - could there be a possibility of a 'members only' section - for paid subscribers?.....

[Mark Z 18]

I never thought about how much Seth spends to run EMTBravo, I have sent him a couple of bucks when I can spare a few and if the day comes where a few dollars more comes in than Seth sends out I am not going to get upset about it. I am not trying to submarine any effort to start a subscription site, just saying that I am not going to beat Seth over the head about what he does with the money, I TRUST HIM!