A Few Updates on Entrecard

With the large announcement last week on the upcoming changes and how they were going to impact users, many people said that they were going to leave the site. Now that many of their questions have been answered, but not all, we can make some clarifications about new rules, features, etc. which will be rolled out soon.

The Above the Fold Rule - This rule has been changed to suit resolutions of up to 1920x1200, meaning you have a lot more room than a "variable" screen size, which could mean that everyone's widget is below the fold. A term of the future advertisers may have been that it must be above the fold with some consistency, so that is likely the reason that this measure has been put into place. However, it will likely make browsing sites easier in the future.

The Credit System - The credit system will remain in place, even after the "switch" to a more monetary-based system, so there are no fees involved with the site - credits will be converted into cash, not the other way around. Additionally, the owner stated that the system would remain free and would never cost anything to be a member/purchase credits to use the system.

Potential Ads - With the new monetization method, there will be ads placed in up to 50% of the addressable market, so users will have to deal with them in their widget. I don't know exactly how this will take place, as some users won't "drop cards" as frequently, although it may lead to more benefits down the road with an increased cash flow between members and the site.

No ads for male enhancement drugs/any drugs, adult-themed ads, nudity, and gambling/casino will be displayed, otherwise the one opportunity for monetizing the site will be gone.

Credit Fees to Reject Ads - There will be no fees to reject ads, so some members may feel the need to reject all ads. However, I feel that this method will still be the wrong approach - why not let members choose from a set of advertisers or categories and have the ads displayed from them, rather than approving/denying individual ads/companies and having the risk of too many rejections on the part of advertisers.

Moving Forward - The exchange system is set to go live sometime later this week or early next week. We will have to wait and see what will come out of it, what rates will be, and how many users will stick to the credit-for-credit or new credit-for-cash exchange program. A major concern is not the monetization factor, but the fact that ads will be infused into the widget, up to 50% of the time.