GameKnot AdBlock? Think Not.
by Tuirgin on Apr.15, 2009, under Chess
I HATE ADVERTISEMENTS. And I am not ashamed. I won’t browse the web without my trusty AdBlock Plus (for Firefox) or GlimmerBlocker (for Safari). The quickest way to turn me off of a web browser is to lack a decent advert blocker. And the quickest way to turn me off of a website is to try to guilt me into getting rid of my ad blockers.
A couple weeks ago I signed up for a free account at GameKnot so that I could evaluate the site. It didn’t take me very long to settle on Chess.com and SchemingMind, but I’ve been playing through my first game over at GameKnot. I don’t want to abandon the game—it’s just a matter of courtesy. I started the game, it hasn’t been dull or boring, and I owe it to my opponent to finish it. If I’m allowed to finish it, that is.
This morning when I went to respond to my opponent’s move, I noticed thanks to their <sarcasm>delightful</sarcasm> flashing mailbox, that I had a message.
Notice from GameKnot: It appears you are blocking some or all of GameKnot’s advertising (banner ads, etc.) on your computer. As you probably know, the free accounts on GameKnot are supported by paid ads — in other words, the advertisers are paying for the server resources and bandwidth used by your account, for the programmers who add new features and improvements, for the support staff, etc. etc.. Since you have blocked ads on your computer, there is no one left to pay for your account, so unfortunately we will not be able to continue providing you with the free services any longer. Please subscribe to a premium membership, or allow all ads to be shown on our website. Thank you for your understanding.
I followed the link for more information about their policy on ad blocking. It is evident from their information that they will put some kind of additional, though unspecified, restrictions on the free accounts where ads are being blocked. What’s more, if your account has been flagged twice for using ad blocking while on GameKnot, the only option for removing the additional restrictions is to become a premium subscriber:
Q: I have now allowed ads for your website, can you remove restrictions from my account? A: Sorry, unfortunately once your account is flagged after 2 prior warnings, you have to subscribe to a premium membershipif you wish to continue to enjoy playing chess on GameKnot.
This is all perfectly within their rights and I wouldn’t suggest otherwise. But it’s also perfectly within my rights to suggest that this is a heavy-handed, customer unfriendly policy. It has definitely settled the question of whether or not I might ever consider becoming a paying subscriber. Subscribers to free services may often be free-loading barnacles, but they should never be treated as such, because it is from that user base that a company hopes to gain paying customers. They shouldn’t be treated like children until they pay up. It just reflects a bad service provider to customer mentality.
I will be finishing my game at GameKnot, provided I’m not banned from the site before the game concludes. After that I won’t be returning unless their policies change.
13 Comments for this entry
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About Tuirgin
Tuirgin is Christopher D. Walborn. Tuirgin has a gaggle of kids and a wife that loves him despite himself. Tuirgin is part of the >14% unemployed in Lee County, FL, but is studying for the CCNA exam in hopes of improved career longevity. Benefactors wishing to enable Tuirgin's dream of being a full-time dilettante should contact him immediately. Tuirgin does not usually refer to himself in the 3rd person. Go figure.- email: christopher@tuirgin.com
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April 15th, 2009 on 1:52 pm
Well I won’t be trying Gameknot that is for sure!! As you said it is well within their rights to do what they did, BUT it does seem like they changed their tune between the first message and their next message. That kind of behavior will definitely keep me from checking out their site.
April 15th, 2009 on 2:04 pm
I take it that I have another flagging to go before I am finally drop-kicked from their servers. I’m going to let my opponent know of the situation in case the site prevents me from finishing the game. I appreciate the need for funds to run a business. I appreciate the cost of bandwidth, programmers, etc. Other sites have found better solutions.
It reminds me of the early days of the digital editions of the local newspapers — some of them completely blocked their sites from users unless the ads went through. I haven’t seen that in a while, though. It’s a rather forceful and crummy practice.
April 15th, 2009 on 6:00 pm
I havent seen many adds on gameknot and i have a free account aswell. But maybe i am not so fixated on the adds and well on the chessboard.
Anyway, it’s up to you what you gonna do, it’s your choice.
April 15th, 2009 on 6:13 pm
For me it’s the principle of the thing. I’m not going to change the configuration of my proxy or my browser to use their site. That kind of thing make my eyes start turning in opposing concentric circles.
Ah, well…
A good ad rant always puts me in the mood to listen to Tom Waits singing Step Right Up.
April 16th, 2009 on 1:36 am
I respect your principals, good for you. Have you checked out http://www.chesscube.com?
It’s not a bad site.
April 16th, 2009 on 7:50 am
I created an account a while back and then realized it was “live” chess… I rarely can be assured of a block of time without interruption with 5 kids and one of them being only 10 months old.
What are the benefits of ChessCube over the traditional servers—FICS & ICC?
April 16th, 2009 on 4:20 am
Tom Waits! Very nice!
April 16th, 2009 on 7:45 am
One of my all-time favorites. Got to see him in concert last summer — only a month after our daughter was born, but my wife made me go anyway.
July 9th, 2009 on 1:26 am
I just had this happen to me, and likewise, as soon as I’m finished with my current game (if I get to finish my current game) I am also finished with GameKnot.
I’m just glad major websites haven’t caught on to this yet (i.e. making service conditional on deactivating your ad blockers).
July 9th, 2009 on 7:45 am
I don’t expect major websites to get far with that kind of practice, what with the necessities of developing for the handicapped. It’s a tactic I haven’t seen for 10 years. Back then some newspapers tried it out, but it didn’t last.
September 27th, 2009 on 11:03 am
Well, I’m done with gameknot. I got kicked for undefined rules violations (no reason except that they want a paid membership.)
I rejoined from another pc with another name and email address, to send my friends a goodbye note, and explain why I wouldn’t be playing them… A week later, that new I.D. was “kicked for rules violations” and a premium membership was required again.
This site is rapidly switching to paid membership only. I’m gone.
Frankly, if that’s what they want, why don’t they just say it, instead of using fake “rules violations” to force people out.
September 29th, 2009 on 10:57 pm
I had a paid membership with gameknot for at least 2 years and all was well. But then I lost my job, fell into hard times and moved to the free membership due to financial reasons. I use browser settings that prevent flashing ads from giving me migrain headaches – and they do. So imagine my dismay in receiving the same “You are using ad blocking software and will not be allowed to play for free anymore” type messages. I am just trying to finish off a few active games for my opponents sake, then I am signing off of gameknot forever! I will not be treated like a dog! How sad that my paid membership over the past years was of little concern for the clowns. I’ll just play my computer, FICS, or check out some other less draconian free chess playing alternatives.
September 29th, 2009 on 11:08 pm
I highly recommend SchemingMind. No deep punishments for being poor.