Skip to main content
Meta Stack Exchange

You are not logged in. Your edit will be placed in a queue until it is peer reviewed.

We welcome edits that make the post easier to understand and more valuable for readers. Because community members review edits, please try to make the post substantially better than how you found it, for example, by fixing grammar or adding additional resources and hyperlinks.

13
  • 2
    That's an interesting idea. I guess it would be possible to have an bidding not that bids for the ad space whenever you make a visit and then displays exactly nothing. That way one would pay a fair price (exactly the same any other advertiser would pay) and per use. Content contributors with reduced ads would need to buy less. Commented Nov 10, 2024 at 8:02
  • 9
    Why would you want to do that? I'm honestly curious. The idea of paying for a site for which one creates, improves, and manages content that is free and public seems to be the opposite of what the network (and any network like this) should want, and will likely quickly push away even more users, slowing down activity even more across the platform, and thereby attracting even less visitors. Commented Nov 10, 2024 at 10:03
  • 3
    If you’re willing to pay to avoid ads, just use a free adblocker Commented Nov 10, 2024 at 12:50
  • 1
    There is already a pending feature request for that, since 2009. Commented Nov 10, 2024 at 14:15
  • 13
    @Joachim there are hosting costs that need to be covered at a minimum. I hate ads, so I'd rather pay to keep the site online than have them serve ads and inevitably complain about people blocking ads as though malvertising campaigns had never happened and people who block ads aren't acting out of self-interest. Note I am not suggesting a paywall, just an option to pay Commented Nov 10, 2024 at 19:53
  • 2
    Thanks, @ErinAnne. Yes, it would be a nice solution, I just fear that a lot of users - who already feel underappreciated - will leave. Commented Nov 11, 2024 at 8:29
  • 8
    yeah, they should probably fix the whole not appreciating the community thing, but I don't see that happening anytime soon either. Commented Nov 11, 2024 at 8:53
  • 2
    @Joachim Since the purpose of advertising is to extract money from users, viewing ads functions as a means of paying. If we must pay somehow to keep the site online, then we may as well have payment options for people who hate ads. Commented Nov 21, 2024 at 18:14
  • Or the site pay us for posting answers? :) Commented Nov 22, 2024 at 16:18
  • 1
    @rogerdpack so—I recognize that you're not serious. but. I do think it'd at least be interesting if SE Inc tried to be fair and used their available metrics (I'm sure I've seen some you've reached X people number on my profile) to reward people for their question / answer "utility" by either showing them fewer ads or, for some (likely earlier / Euler-prolific users) making the offer to pay them. Given operating costs I think even the "best" users could only be offered a pittance. But it'd be interesting. and probably have some bad incentives alongside it. Commented Nov 22, 2024 at 19:59
  • 1
    @rogerdpack weirdly I'm reminded that jury pay in Texas (where I am) was incredibly bad (I think $8/day and recently bumped to something less ridiculous but still bad). It might pay for the cost of parking near the downtown Houston courthouse if you park wisely. Actually making the meager payments cost enough that they encouraged you to donate the pay instead, which they could do in lumps. When I served on a civil suit jury for two weeks we all got a substantial bonus from both parties involved (ca. hundreds of $) by a mechanism I don't really understand. I could see SE operate like this. Commented Nov 22, 2024 at 20:15
  • 1
    like, I don't think it'll even happen, but the combination of "technically we could offer you a little for your answer if you use an approved payment provider like Paypal or Ko-fi; please plow it back into SE's costs instead" and "if you give us a link to an approved payment provider, we'll display it next to your Qs and As and maybe someone will reward you" (gross) at least seems logically consistent Commented Nov 22, 2024 at 20:19
  • 7
    @ErinAnne I would not want people to get money for posting on SE. They could never pay enough to be relevant anyway but it would encourages countless people to make bad posts which look good/get lots of views to get money. Commented Nov 23, 2024 at 22:55