Quote Originally Posted by shagwAg3n
understand where you're coming from. but at the same time, are you speaking from experience? have you had to seek out sponsors and have you turned them down in order to keep a community?

i'm not saying i have by any means, but if you haven't either then why do you speak as if it's such an easy thing to do, especially considering IA is not a full time job for either Julio or Paul?

and furthermore, there are numerous online forums where jack squat is allowed, yet still have a huge following. i don't think it's fair to insinuate that you can't maintain an online webboard w/o allowing a free for all. TRUE, IA might not be the same if more and more things become banned, but it doesn't mean IA won't survive and find a potentially larger following of ppl who don't care for the WL nonsense.

finally, i love IA and all the retarded bs that comes w/it, the callouts and all the inappropriate jokes. at the same time though, i'm on other boards that are CLEAN and i enjoy those as well, so it's all whatever to me.
I have run websites in the past (taking a break for school) and I do know how hard it is to turn down a customer, the first couple times. Sometimes they will straight-up leave and you move on, other times they will reconsider and perhaps change their criteria for the site. Julio has given up control of the site to his sponsors. Just because his name is on the certificate doesn't mean it's his anymore. He is merely working for them when he decides to meet their every request.

So here's where IA as a business stands:
An advertiser comes, looking for access to the wide consumer base. They say "well, we don't like this and that" And here goes Julio and the mods, out to change stuff. Now they are working for the sponsor. So not only is Julio selling his product (user base) he is also adapting it to each customers specific request, which we can call personalization (thus changing the consumer base, even slightly)

Look at any major company/corporation. Let's take Ford for instance. Let's say you go in to buy a Mustang but you don't really like the engine choices. So you say "well I would buy one, but I'd like a 5.7L engine instead of the 4.6" they are going to laugh at you and gladly see you out the door. Even if 1000 people walk through saying the same thing, guess what? They aren't going to do it. This is why Ford only sold the Model T in black, things are easier to sell when you offer the customer a set list of options.

So let's say IA is a Model T. Now things get interesting. Let's say Ford will bend to each consumers request, but each change made has to be made to every car (by every car I mean even cars already sold, due to the fact that IA is a singular entity, each sponsor is buying the same IA, not their own personalized one) So, your first customer comes in and buys one, in black. Your next customer comes in and wants it in red. Now you have to start making them all red AND you have to go back and paint the first customer's car red. The process continues for each car sold. Sound like an easy car to sell?

I know this is long, but it's true and I'm bored