I am a: Quirky sysadmin. Geek. Gamer. Comic fangirl. My little space, my home on the interwebs. I blog about personal stuffs, work, various coding projects, and anything else I feel like.

I got an email from WebRing last week, but had put off reading it until today — mostly because it was huge and I could already tell that they were changing things. I didn’t realize what until I received an email last night from the manager to a ring I belong to for one of my hobby sites. Apparently WebRing has *finally* decided to start charging for ring memberships and management. This is what I received from WebRing:

From: webring@webring.com
Date: Sep 26, 2006 11:22 PM
Subject: WebRing Membership Program

Hello WebRingers!

We want you, as one of our most active and valued members, to be the first to hear about some of the new programs we are offering!

WebRing Membership Premium Levels
We are introducing a new membership program designed to help you make the most out of your participation in WebRing. We offer three levels of membership. Our basic membership is still free. For more active members we offer two affordable premium levels.

We are sending this to you first because we value you as a member. We want to give you the opportunity to take your time in checking out the different levels so that you can decide which one works best for you. Members who belong to more than 5 rings or manage more than 2 rings are asked to choose a level of membership by January 15, 2007. The different levels make it easy for you to make more money while receiving the services that are right for you.

Please read about the Member Program at http://dir.webring.com/h/benefits (page will be available by September 28, 2006) for more information about each level, options, and opportunities for you. Details regarding the transition period can he found at http://dir.webring.com/h/transition (page will be available by September 28, 2006)

We are excited about this new program and look forward to your feedback. Please let us know your thoughts about the new member policy at membership@webring.com. We want to hear from you!

WebRing Affiliate Program
Become a WebRing Affiliate Program member now and start getting paid!

We are thrilled to introduce our new Affiliate Program, a revenue-sharing partnership between you and WebRing. It’s simple: place a WebRing affiliate button on your site and earn a commission from any new member sign-up generated through your site!

What is an affiliate program?
An affiliate program is relationship-focused marketing: you attract people to your ring who are interested in your topics, your interests, your passions! Chefs, forest-fire fighters, grocery store clerks, crafters, hobbyists, soccer moms — anyone can be an affiliate. Affiliate members can now earn a referral fee for visitors who join WebRing.

We are simply asking you to do what you do every day of the week: expose your site and your content to the worldwide web. Just add the affiliate program button and tell the world you’re doing it on WebRing.

According to Forrester Research, affiliate program earnings represent $53 BILLION of all e-commerce sales in 2005. How can you earn a sizeable piece of this pie? Join now and receive some powerful tips that will get you started making money today!

By becoming a WebRing Affiliate Program member, you choose a money-making opportunity that you feel good about.

Here’s How It Works
When someone signs up with WebRing through your site:

• We’ll pay you when they join a ring.
• We’ll pay you even more if you invite new members!
• You can earn even more if they sign up for WebRing premium services.

When does it start?
The program officially starts October 1, 2006, so sign up now!

Details
Please read about the Affiliate Program by clicking the URL provided below for more information about payouts, options, and opportunities. We are excited about this new program and look forward to your success! Please let us know your thoughts by sending comments to affiliate@webring.com. We want to hear from you!

For details on the Affiliate Program, click here: http://dir.webring.com/h/affiliate (page will be available by September 28, 2006).

Thank you for all you do for WebRing and for your input, ideas, and feedback. We appreciate your participation and communication!

The WebRing Team

I checked out the website this morning and this is what I found:

Premium Level 2 Membership

$36/year (Only $24 until January 15, 2007)

Choose this level of membership and take advantage of these perks:

• Keep the largest percentage of revenue when you monetize your sites and rings.
• Add your website(s) to rings. Up to 50 ring memberships in the WebRing system.
• Manage up to 30 rings.
• Control advertising.
• Have expanded customization options.
• Get your own support representative.

Premium Level 1 Membership

$12/year (Only $10 until January 15, 2007)

Choose this level of membership and take advantage of these perks:

• Keep a large percentage of revenue when you monetize your sites and rings.
• Add your website(s) to rings. Up to 15 ring memberships in the WebRing system.
• Manage up to 10 rings.
• Control advertising.
• Have expanded customization options.

Free Membership

No annual fee

Choose this level of membership and take advantage of these perks:

• Keep a percentage of revenue when you monetize your sites and rings
• Add your website(s) to rings. Up to 5 ring memberships in the WebRing system.
• Manage up to 2 rings.

You know, I can remember when they added that “unique” rating system — people bitched and complained and it was removed from the front page. Then they added the “cost” of running the ring values — some expressed concern, but nobody complained (or at least that I saw) about the possibility of having to pay to participate and/or run rings.

Personally I knew it was only a matter of time before this would happen.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am NOT paying them 40 bucks a year just to be able to SIT on a bunch of rings, much less RUN some!

Fuck WebRing and the horse they rode in on.