• Hail Guest!
    We're looking for Community Content Contribuitors to Stratics. If you would like to write articles, fan fiction, do guild or shard event recaps, it's simple. Find out how in this thread: Community Contributions
  • Greetings Guest, Having Login Issues? Check this thread!
  • Hail Guest!,
    Please take a moment to read this post reminding you all of the importance of Account Security.
  • Hail Guest!
    Please read the new announcement concerning the upcoming addition to Stratics. You can find the announcement Here!

Selling Stratics?

Flutter

Always Present
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Awards
1
Stratics contests and events were actually already in the works. The addition of the calendar and starting to get it populated and working smoothly was the first step toward that.
Don't get defensive hon. I am the one who suggested the calendar, the contests, and quite a few other things to RonBron via Skype. It was not meant as a jab at anyone, simply playing with the role play that our friend Nabin started.
 

Riyana

Operations
Administrator
Professional
Governor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Event Coordinator
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
Don't get defensive hon. I am the one who suggested the calendar, the contests, and quite a few other things to RonBron via Skype. It was not meant as a jab at anyone, simply playing with the role play that our friend Nabin started.
Not at all. Just thought I'd toss that out there since it came up.
 

Lord Frodo

Stratics Legend
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Another potential issue of course, is if it's bought by a freeshard owner.....:eek:
I think most people assume that freeshard owners are kids in their mums basement running a shard for fun, but, there are quite a few out there with considerable resources (money+time) behind them, so it's always a possibility.
Selling the site, with it's history and links to Broadsword on an open market, is definitely risky.
If a freesharder were to buy Stratics and use it to promote their shard all links to Broadsword would be severed 5 minutes ago, faster than ASAP.
 

AdamPD

Journeyman
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
If a freesharder were to buy Stratics and use it to promote their shard all links to Broadsword would be severed 5 minutes ago, faster than ASAP.
Indeed, although if they were running a freeshard, I don't think they would care, heh.
 

Lord Frodo

Stratics Legend
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Indeed, although if they were running a freeshard, I don't think they would care, heh.
I still think Broadsword and EA both would still have a problem with it and not associate with them anymore it would still backdoor link them together. IMHO I do not think a freesharder would want Stratics to do well, it would just be another thorn in UO's side to have Stratics fail.
 

Kirthag

Former Stratics Publisher
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Benefactor
instead of non-profit, what about a 'not for profit'? (they are different.)
Aye, that they are.

However, it really depends on the business model and what a new owner (or group thereof - aka board) wants to do, eh?

Whatever the case, it is all in the auction now. Ron Bron made it clear he is turning it loose and the reserve has been met so it MUST go through Flippa, it MUST be sold, and whomever or whatever group from within our community wants it MUST act.

I will say, most Flippa auctions get interesting within the last day or so - so yeah, $5,500 right now (someone was feeling out the reserve), that could change.

And I will say it now - this might tick off some of you. The "wealth" of Stratics is not in the forums. It is in the content and the history that quite honestly, a lot of you DO NOT SEE.
If the forum didn't have that data loss in 2004, would be worth something. But right now, the boards are just community banter and bashing. The real wealth of Stratics is in the articles, tools, stories and plethora of information a lot of you don't even know about. (added with edit). And technically - all that content is not just UO stuff.

*takes her freebie drink*
Just gimme that golden bottle of Mezcal with the great big worm in it.


(last edit after some PMs)

meh... some ppl might not get it so here:
Resources: "Nonprofit" vs. "Not-for-profit" — does it make a difference?

Being nonprofit or not-for-profit really depends on the business model (if one is even chosen) and the locality of the owner (or corporation thereof).

I said "nonprofit" for I do belong to a couple of nonprofit organizations that are very much like Stratics - a community with a forum and a library of content used for spreading awareness and knowledge. Both are, indeed, 501C3 organizations and have events that raise money to defray operational costs. No one is paid a red cent, not even the boards (of which I am on). We chose the nonprofit status in our model so that we could generate funds without hassle from the IRS (and the state says to do it) while we take our overages and donate to certain causes here in Hawaii. One organization is local, the other is international (yes, really world wide).


I digress.

We can speculate all we want. Wish, suggest, pancake, pray. There is nothing anyone can do unless they are putting money up at the auction.
 
Last edited:

petemage

Babbling Loonie
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
understands that Stratics will forever only be a niche website for a near 20 year old game and you're never going to get rich by owning it. It needs to be bought by someone who is willing to run it for the community who isn't worried too much about expansion or profit
Amen! All that talk about Stratics being serious business is imho highly delusional.
 

Poo

The Grandest of the PooBah’s
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Benefactor
ill pitch in some cash.

on a related side note, who says we have to register it in the US?
taxes are very reasonable in Mozambique.

like others have said, ill kick in some cash but i want nothing to do with it, think of me as the creepy guy in the corner that likes to watch.....

and whoa..... what do you guys mean your not using your real names!
freak'n, am i the only one who's truthful around here!
 

Kayhynn

Certifiable
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Supporter
I actually have a question for @Ron Bron

Looking at the auction I only see mention of the forums for sale. Is all of stratics, including the domain names and all the content from previous years for sale as well or just the forums.

if just the forums and not all the previous content, my interest is significantly lessoned because all of the content could be useful in making the site profitable.

Cheers

Edit: For everyone discussing pitching in, GoFundMe, etc. the issue I have with it is something most people forget about.

If I were to raise, say the minimum amount needed to buy Stratics, I would still have to pay taxes, by law, for the amount of money I received through funding campaigns. I'd also have to raise more than the minimum because of the cuts both the fundraising sites take as well as PayPal as well as funds to pay for the site for at least a year to bring it to bare minimum functioning. So let's say the minimum bid is $6,000 to win, I'd have to raise at least 8 or 9k to pay for everything else.

While it sounds like a good idea, the legal side is the most difficult side of things, especially since the new owner would need to create an LLC if they don't have a business name to hold the company and not be held personally liable for things.

Crazy what it requires to even consider doing this.
 

Nexus

Site Support
Administrator
Moderator
Professional
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Wiki Moderator
UNLEASHED
I actually have a question for @Ron Bron

Looking at the auction I only see mention of the forums for sale. Is all of stratics, including the domain names and all the content from previous years for sale as well or just the forums.

if just the forums and not all the previous content, my interest is significantly lessoned because all of the content could be useful in making the site profitable.

Cheers

Edit: For everyone discussing pitching in, GoFundMe, etc. the issue I have with it is something most people forget about.

If I were to raise, say the minimum amount needed to buy Stratics, I would still have to pay taxes, by law, for the amount of money I received through funding campaigns. I'd also have to raise more than the minimum because of the cuts both the fundraising sites take as well as PayPal as well as funds to pay for the site for at least a year to bring it to bare minimum functioning. So let's say the minimum bid is $6,000 to win, I'd have to raise at least 8 or 9k to pay for everything else.

While it sounds like a good idea, the legal side is the most difficult side of things, especially since the new owner would need to create an LLC if they don't have a business name to hold the company and not be held personally liable for things.

Crazy what it requires to even consider doing this.
It's the entirety of Stratics

Property Overview
Stratics consists of a brand, several website properties, and social network accounts, detailed below.
  1. Stratics.com - This website is built using XenForo, a full-featured forum application. The forum includes approximately 1.8 million messages, 220 thousand discussions, and 12 thousand total members.
  2. Uo2.stratics.com - This website is built using WordPress and contains about 4,500 blog articles and strategy guides, and 20,000 media files. The WordPress installation and plugins are kept up to date. The installation contains 37 plugins, of which 16 are active. All of these plugins are free (some may include "pro" options). All Stratics WordPress properties are installed using WordPress multi-site for easier administration.
  3. uo.stratics.com - This website was built using a combination of drupal, html, and php. It is the oldest property of Stratics and lacks front end administration. The exact number of articles associated with this website is unknown, but likely exceeds stratics.com. Several useful game calculators, and historical archives are also contained on this website, including the official UOHerald database which was given to Stratics by Ultima Online.
  4. Facebook - The Stratics Facebook page has ~1,100 followers.
  5. Twitter - The Stratics Twitter page has ~1,000 followers.
  6. Google+ - The Stratics Google+ page has ~100 followers.
  7. YouTube - The Stratics YouTube page has ~180 subscribers and 107 videos. The World of Warcraft Stratics YouTube page has an additional 43 videos and ~1,500 subscribers.
  8. Other Properties - Stratics has several other smaller properties that are not widely used including: Twitch, Steam Group, LinkedIn, Google Apps account (grandfathered for unlimited accounts with free access as compared to the current model of $5/user-month).
 

OREOGL

Crazed Zealot
Professional
Stratics Veteran
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
I actually have a question for @Ron Bron

Looking at the auction I only see mention of the forums for sale. Is all of stratics, including the domain names and all the content from previous years for sale as well or just the forums.

if just the forums and not all the previous content, my interest is significantly lessoned because all of the content could be useful in making the site profitable.

Cheers

Edit: For everyone discussing pitching in, GoFundMe, etc. the issue I have with it is something most people forget about.

If I were to raise, say the minimum amount needed to buy Stratics, I would still have to pay taxes, by law, for the amount of money I received through funding campaigns. I'd also have to raise more than the minimum because of the cuts both the fundraising sites take as well as PayPal as well as funds to pay for the site for at least a year to bring it to bare minimum functioning. So let's say the minimum bid is $6,000 to win, I'd have to raise at least 8 or 9k to pay for everything else.

While it sounds like a good idea, the legal side is the most difficult side of things, especially since the new owner would need to create an LLC if they don't have a business name to hold the company and not be held personally liable for things.

Crazy what it requires to even consider doing this.

I think most would consider the money to be a gift which isn't subject to taxes up to like 10,000 or something.
 

Kayhynn

Certifiable
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Supporter
I think most would consider the money to be a gift which isn't subject to taxes up to like 10,000 or something.
If you used a website to raise money for a personal cause such as paying for medical expenses for your animal or sending your child to summer camp, these donations are considered a gift as long as the donor does not receive anything in return.

For example, if someone donates $100 to you and do not receive anything in return, the $100 is a non-taxable gift.

However, if someone donates $100 to you and you give them a gift worth $20 in return, then your non-taxable gift is $80.

If the donation is a gift, a gift tax may apply; however, the person responsible for the gift tax would be the donor, not you as the recipient.

In 2014, a donor can donate up to $14,000 without being subject to gift tax.

If you crowd funded to raise money to start a new business and someone donated money in exchange for equity in your business, the donations are considered investments or “capital contributions”.

In this case, that’s not considered taxable income and you do not need to report this on your return.

On the other hand, if someone donated money but did not receive equity in your company, this is considered taxable income that you will need to report on your return.

Source: How to Claim Crowdfunding Campaigns on Tax Return
 

Riyana

Operations
Administrator
Professional
Governor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Event Coordinator
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
Great news, everyone! The Stratics senior staff is hard at work pursuing making a bid on the site. As volunteers from within this community, we want to keep Stratics stable and solid for years to come--and in the hands of the community that lives and loves UO. Check out this thread.
 

Lord Frodo

Stratics Legend
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
So I guess this means that Stratics is no longer for sale, congrats to who ever bought it.
 

kelmo

Old and in the way
Professional
Alumni
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Dread Lord
Sticky threads suck anyway... Do not read too much into it. I will bet there are a lot of folks scrambling around right now.
 

Captn Norrington

Stratics Forum Moderator
Moderator
Professional
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Campaign Supporter
So I guess this means that Stratics is no longer for sale, congrats to who ever bought it.
Actually it was unstickied just because having 2 threads about the same thing stickied is kind of a waste of space. If we were trying to "silence people" wouldn't the thread have just been deleted as soon as it were posted? and why would we have stickied it in the first place if we didn't want people to see it?

:)
 

Kirthag

Former Stratics Publisher
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Benefactor
Actually it was unstickied just because having 2 threads about the same thing stickied is kind of a waste of space.
but they are not the same thing.
the first (this thread) is in general where others are discussing the sale.
the second is specifically about the current staff getting their funds together.

ultimately, the two are very different threads of conversation..,.
 

Captn Norrington

Stratics Forum Moderator
Moderator
Professional
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Campaign Supporter
but they are not the same thing.
the first (this thread) is in general where others are discussing the sale.
the second is specifically about the current staff getting their funds together.

ultimately, the two are very different threads of conversation..,.
I see your point, I wasn't the one who unstickied it, was just explaining the reasoning for it.
 

Zosimus

Grand Inquisitor
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
but they are not the same thing.
the first (this thread) is in general where others are discussing the sale.
the second is specifically about the current staff getting their funds together.

ultimately, the two are very different threads of conversation..,.

She is 100% right. This is a total different topic than the other thread which is about staff trying to raise money to buy it.

Should of never been unstickied because anybody has the right to bid on Stratics on Flippa and may not see this thread if it got pushed down onto another page.
 

Capt. Lucky

Grand Inquisitor
Stratics Veteran
I know how to fix all these problems. Get a big basket on money. Grab handfuls of cash and keep throwing money at it. Problems solved.
 

Merlin

The Enchanter
Moderator
Professional
Governor
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
She is 100% right. This is a total different topic than the other thread which is about staff trying to raise money to buy it.

Should of never been unstickied because anybody has the right to bid on Stratics on Flippa and may not see this thread if it got pushed down onto another page.
How does your right to bid on Stratics become affected by this post being unstickied? There will be several other threads about the topic. There is no foul intention here.
 

Zosimus

Grand Inquisitor
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
How does your right to bid on Stratics become affected by this post being unstickied? There will be several other threads about the topic. There is no foul intention here.

I never said my right. I said anybody's right that may want to. If RonBron wants to maximize his potential winning bid why unstickie a thread that could make him more money in the end. Not all that may love UO reads Stratics daily, Some of these same people may have more resources at their disposal to, lets use the word. "save" Stratics. Everything is about brands now days and Stratics is a brand even as old as it is.

As it's already been stated in this thread the other topic that is stickied is about staff attempts to raise funds to buy Stratics.

There is no ill will attempt to slander/hinder the staff that is trying to buy it but this is just business and free enterprise. Money talks in the end no matter the loyalty or friendships when it comes to business.

Lets go back and focus on the unstickie issue. Maybe somebody that may not want to buy the site but may contribute to it but doesn't quite understand the whole situation and thinks that the site may be transferring hands if staff can only raise the money from the other stickied thread. You know as well as I do most just skim through long threads and miss information posted. This alone with the other thread would clear that up and maybe others would donate to help staff or just bid themselves.
 

OREOGL

Crazed Zealot
Professional
Stratics Veteran
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
I never said my right. I said anybody's right that may want to. If RonBron wants to maximize his potential winning bid why unstickie a thread that could make him more money in the end. Not all that may love UO reads Stratics daily, Some of these same people may have more resources at their disposal to, lets use the word. "save" Stratics. Everything is about brands now days and Stratics is a brand even as old as it is.

As it's already been stated in this thread the other topic that is stickied is about staff attempts to raise funds to buy Stratics.

There is no ill will attempt to slander/hinder the staff that is trying to buy it but this is just business and free enterprise. Money talks in the end no matter the loyalty or friendships when it comes to business.

Lets go back and focus on the unstickie issue. Maybe somebody that may not want to buy the site but may contribute to it but doesn't quite understand the whole situation and thinks that the site may be transferring hands if staff can only raise the money from the other stickied thread. You know as well as I do most just skim through long threads and miss information posted. This alone with the other thread would clear that up and maybe others would donate to help staff or just bid themselves.
Let me get this straight. Your argument is that it shouldn't have been "unstickied" because it may make Ron Bron more money?

If someone is looking to donate I'm sure the other thread will cover it.
 

Arcus

Grand Poobah
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Very tempted to place a bid. Along with changes and improvements that the community has wanted for a while there are quite a few people I would not mind giving the heave ho. Oh what a sweet day that would be.
 

Victim of Siege

Grand Poobah
Governor
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
I know how to fix all these problems. Get a big basket on money. Grab handfuls of cash and keep throwing money at it. Problems solved.
I have seen that in action, it's fun to watch as long as your money isn't in the basket . . .
 

JC the Builder

Crazed Zealot
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Go buy it.
Unfortunately there is no buy it now button.

As a serious reply I don't see how you can just put a website like Stratics up for sale to the highest bidder. What if someone buys it and decides to just delete everything and make some brand new gaming website. What if they decide to just make Stratics: Clash of Clans Strategies. They could make a lot of money doing that.
 
Last edited:

kelmo

Old and in the way
Professional
Alumni
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Dread Lord
I believe Stratics should end with friends. That is where it began... with friends.

How the world has changed in 20 years.

Some scrub site is selling IanStorrm.com right now for just over a grand.
 

Merlin

The Enchanter
Moderator
Professional
Governor
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
Unfortunately there is no buy it now button.

As a serious reply I don't see how you can just put a website like Stratics up for sale to the highest bidder. What if someone buys it and decides to just delete everything and make some brand new gaming website. What if they decide to just make Stratics: Clash of Clans Strategies. They could make a lot of money doing that.
All the more reason to help the current moderators buy the site and return ownership back to people who actually have a vested interest in the game.
 

kelmo

Old and in the way
Professional
Alumni
Supporter
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Dread Lord
IanStorm was a sweet little forum. I was a wall flower on the official UO forums. Then it was cancelled,

I met some pretty cool folks on IanStorm. Now it is just a junk name.
 

Kirthag

Former Stratics Publisher
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Benefactor
Really doing a disservice to the site and the decades of content contributed by volunteers and the community. It is not just a "forum" - but an archive of game information and lore mainly focused on Ultima Online. Within the databases are also articles, features, guides and breakdowns for other games, notably EVE Online and WoW. Its too bad none of it is "public" anymore - but it is all part of what is "Stratics".

I just got off the phone with my "angel investors" who told me they will not be putting in for this "forum".

Ryan is selling it short.

*bows and goes back to her lurking ways*
 

FrejaSP

Queen of The Outlaws
Professional
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Campaign Patron
I feel the worse thing is not to know, who is doing the bid, bidder 1 and 2 really seem to want it but why do they want to pay that much for it.
 

Flagg

Sage
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
It is utterly stone cold to just keep throwing community around for highest bidder. Unfortunate how EA/Osi/whatever never bothered to make official forums or, better yet, buy Stratics themselves. It would have prevented getting stuck with owners like one now selling.

It is ridiculous to watch as the site switches owners from some daddy's little old-money venture capitalist to another. Buy the site, watch people working for you for free work on the site, then sell it. Ruthless. I'm sure people who are shameless enough to tick like this do have a change in the world though.

I can not imagine how those who have actually worked hard for this site, for free, feel when watching something like this take place. I'm betting 25k in plat none of admins/mods will see a single dime of the cash, heh. Non-profit fan site for anyone..except the guy who owns, buys and sellls it. What a wonderful world.
 
Last edited:

Zosimus

Grand Inquisitor
Alumni
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Let me get this straight. Your argument is that it shouldn't have been "unstickied" because it may make Ron Bron more money?

If someone is looking to donate I'm sure the other thread will cover it.
Partially yes. I believe in capitalism at it's finest no matter who you have to step on to get your goal.

BUT.........

this part below bolded is the main focus of my post you missed......

Lets go back and focus on the unstickie issue. Maybe somebody that may not want to buy the site but may contribute to it but doesn't quite understand the whole situation and thinks that the site may be transferring hands if staff can only raise the money from the other stickied thread. You know as well as I do most just skim through long threads and miss information posted. This alone with the other thread would clear that up and maybe others would donate to help staff or just bid themselves.


No worries though I am just waiting for the last possible minutes of the auction..... if it goes cheaply enough which atm it is.... bidding it up now is kind of pointless as I see new bids today.
 

OREOGL

Crazed Zealot
Professional
Stratics Veteran
UNLEASHED
Campaign Patron
Partially yes. I believe in capitalism at it's finest no matter who you have to step on to get your goal.

BUT.........

this part below bolded is the main focus of my post you missed......

Lets go back and focus on the unstickie issue. Maybe somebody that may not want to buy the site but may contribute to it but doesn't quite understand the whole situation and thinks that the site may be transferring hands if staff can only raise the money from the other stickied thread. You know as well as I do most just skim through long threads and miss information posted. This alone with the other thread would clear that up and maybe others would donate to help staff or just bid themselves.


No worries though I am just waiting for the last possible minutes of the auction..... if it goes cheaply enough which atm it is.... bidding it up now is kind of pointless as I see new bids today.

:rolleyes:
 
Top