On Thu, Nov 27, 2014 at 11:44 AM, Liam Wyatt <liamwyatt(a)gmail.com> wrote:
I am however negatively-struck by the finishing statement, a return to the
old motto of "keep us online without advertising
for one more year". I
thought that we had collectively agreed that banners that directly threaten
advertising next year were not going to happen any more.
The Foundation just reported in its latest financial statements[1] assets
including –
· Cash and cash equivalents of $28 million (up 5.7 million),
· Investments of $23 million (also up 5.7 million).
Claiming in the fundraising banner that money is needed to "keep Wikipedia
online and ad-free" verges on dishonesty, in my opinion.
See also the graphs in the Wikipedia article[2] on the Wikimedia Foundation
(this latest financial report is not yet included).
I remember Jimmy Wales proudly telling the public[3] in 2005 how little it
cost to run Wikipedia:
*“So, we’re doing around 1.4 billion page views monthly. So, it’s really
gotten to be a huge thing. And everything is managed by the volunteers and
the total monthly cost for our bandwidth is about 5,000 dollars, and that’s
essentially our main cost. We could actually do without the employee … We
actually hired Brion [Vibber] because he was working part-time for two
years and full-time at Wikipedia so we actually hired him so he could get a
life and go to the movies sometimes.”*
While today, the Wikimedia Foundation attracts rather more page views – 21
billion a month, i.e. 15 times as much – even 15 times the $5,000 a month
Wales mentioned would only be $75,000 a month, or $900,000 a year; and that
is without allowing for economies of scale, and the fact that bandwidth
costs have decreased since 2005. I am sure this is balanced by various
server-side improvements, but still. The Foundation is now regularly
taking, and asking for, more than $50 million a year.
I am sure these banners, which have been in testing for months now, "work"
in terms of bringing money in. But wouldn't it be nice if the public were
told what the money is really for, instead of being left with the
impression that lack of money is jeopardising the continued existence of
Wikipedia?
[1]
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/foundation/e/e3/FINAL_13_14From_KPMG…
[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_Foundation#Finances
[3]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQR0gx0QBZ4#t=275