|
|
Post by The Fence End on Jan 21, 2011 9:20:38 GMT
Might as well be given the amount of free to view articles on there since the new guys took over.
All the player interviews that were once available to all to read are now pay per view videos. Either the club is trying to milk us fans for every penny they can or the new guys are too lazy to type up transcripts of the interviews and simply upload the video. That's fine if they wan't to do that but don't make us pay for every one.
I know they had to put more things on there for those that do pay but please can we try and get a happy balance between free and pay-per-view stuff?
|
|
|
|
Post by Ricky Otto on Jan 21, 2011 9:54:58 GMT
I will never pay for official site content. I go on there to see whats going on and it can sometimes entice me to go to a game. A lack of free material will be a serious loss in potential sales pitches.
Its the same as Sky Sports News making that non freeview. Dodgy move in my opinion.
|
|
|
|
Post by fantasticmrox on Jan 21, 2011 10:27:31 GMT
Rubbish - the whole point is to make the yellow player content more value for money and therefore get people to sign up.
I doubt there will be an awful lot less 'free content' up there - just that there will be a whole lot more on yellow player. Quite a good thing in my opinion.
That they dont type up every interview is fine by me - makes it worth viewing the videos after all!
They will still tell you all the important stuff and breaking news, at the end of the day. Just now it seems there will be less boring and pointless filler. I think the official website has clearly improved remarkably since the new guy took over.
My only complaint is that the videos are streaming and don't 'load' so to speak, ala You Tube. So if you are on a slow connection, it jumps continuously - you cannot wait for it to load then watch it later.
This is a serious issue, but sadly one beyond the club's control as it's down to PTV.
|
|
|
|
Post by scoob on Jan 21, 2011 10:27:50 GMT
I signed up to yellow player last August purely to listen to the first game of the season because I was in Mallorca so this was the only way to listen. I've rarely used it since but paid for an annual package. I doubt I will renew because it is poor value.
With regard to the opening post maybe it is a little unfair to criticise at this stage when the new team has only been in place for a short time but if it continues then people will stop looking at the official site. Every comany knows that a free to access website with regular updates is one of the best forms of marketing so I expect the current situation to change very soon.
|
|
|
|
Post by Millman on Jan 21, 2011 10:30:25 GMT
No problems in having more pay per view content but not at the expense of normal content. Also due to the amount of pay per view content the free content is being shuffled off the home page before it can be read.
The other point is do we feel the club is treating the fans with enough respect or are we just being treated as cash cows?
|
|
|
|
Post by fantasticmrox on Jan 21, 2011 10:32:54 GMT
Seconded. No problems in having more pay per view content but not at the expense of normal content. Also due to the amount of pay per view content the free content is being shuffled off the home page before it can be read. The other point is do we feel the club is treating the fans with enough respect or are we just being treated as cash cows? I'd say by making the paid-for content more value for money, the club are actually treating those that have put more money into the club for this service with more respect. At the end of the day, we all want OUFC to be profitable and make money don't we? So why people are complaining that a service that provides vital revenue has been improved upon, I am aghast. |
|
|
|
Post by Long John Silver on Jan 21, 2011 10:35:41 GMT
No problems in having more pay per view content but not at the expense of normal content. Also due to the amount of pay per view content the free content is being shuffled off the home page before it can be read. The other point is do we feel the club is treating the fans with enough respect or are we just being treated as cash cows? Spot on. Extra content for those that want (or can afford) to pay for Yellow player by all means, but it shouldn't mean less for those that don't sign up. |
|
|
|
Post by fantasticmrox on Jan 21, 2011 10:41:57 GMT
i don't think it will mean less free content - although to be honest if the typed up interviews are cut back a bit I won't complain, especially as a yellow player subscriber, i don't want to read the story and then hear it a second time in interview.
I accept the point that too many YP content may push the breaking news stories out of the 'latest headlines' box - but i think there is little the club can do about that, it's the PTV format.
If people have any brains they will click 'more' though and see a bigger list of recent stories.
Perhaps if it's important ticket/new signing/match preview information, the club could just keep those 'free' content stories at the top of the list as a sticky, so to speak?
This used to happen before so sure it's possible.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ricky Otto on Jan 21, 2011 10:46:06 GMT
FMO - The site has been notably short of free content recently in comparison to the past. We must of course caveat that the newbies are still new and need time.
However whilst I agree those paying for the service should be rewarded, that should not be at the expense of free content. I think there is only limited upsell opportunity here, and more revenue will be generated by the 10,000 hits per day potentially turning into matchday revenue. You only have to turn up to one match and the club has made double what it would make from YP in a year.
|
|
|
|
Post by slappy on Jan 21, 2011 10:49:52 GMT
Under the old system I got one or two interviews per week, only to see them written up for free the next day.
Much more video content now, though whether you can keep interviewing 4 players per week may get a bit predictable.
Perhaps the club are taking yellow player seriously now, before was it seen as a pain in the arse to upload videos at an hour a time and with a camcorder which couldn't pick up sound very well.
I even saw there was a free video on there earlier this week.
|
|
|
|
Post by captainox on Jan 21, 2011 10:50:17 GMT
it's not obvious which videos are available for those who do not have a subscription either.
I presumed the Maclean one was only for YP payers but just watched it.
|
|
|
|
Post by fantasticmrox on Jan 21, 2011 10:55:01 GMT
I'd argue the website is not short of free content - it's just that the YP content has swamped it by increasing fivefold!
No bad thing, as long as the free content is not lost.
As I said, a sticky thing to ensure the free stories are at the top would be good.
Ideally - a way of moving the YP content to another area with perhaps one link a day stating all the new content available on there would be ideal - but that is not possible within the PTV website template, i'd imagine.
I don't think most fans realise sometimes how important the YP revenue is to the club - it's not just the money you spend subscribing to it - the club also get money from PTV if they reach certain targets, as far as I am aware, and then there is most probably commission for advertising clickthroughs, etc.
The commercial team at the club are now focused on making the YP content more viable and worth the money for a reason.
|
|
|
|
Post by slappy on Jan 21, 2011 11:02:04 GMT
Now that the football league have clamped down on Deddington Steve's youtubes, another reason to subscribe is to see goals, as the free BBC links expire after a week.
|
|
OUFC Gav
Junior Member
www.mincheryfarmweb.co.uk
Posts: 94 
|
Post by OUFC Gav on Jan 21, 2011 11:11:30 GMT
Now that the football league have clamped down on Deddington Steve's youtubes, another reason to subscribe is to see goals, as the free BBC links expire after a week. The highlights on the official site are normally a longer edit now as well. |
|
|
|
Post by cuppatea on Jan 21, 2011 11:37:59 GMT
From what I can gather, the only two things have changed under the new regime:
- There are more video interviews conducted and therefore there is more yellow player content.
- In the past, we might have got a short transcribed quote from one or two of these interviews dressed up as a free story. They offered up very little and were essentially just adverts for Yellow Player anyway.
By offering up more video content to Yellow Player, it is offering better value for money for those who shell out for it. The trick the new boys will have to pull off is finding a balance between offering up value for money for premium subscribers while not alienating the casual every day user. For those who feel they're missing out but don't want to pay, 90% of the time those video interviews are conducted at the press call and the very same people will be interviewed by Jack FM, the Oxford Mail and the BBC.
|
|
|
|
Post by cuppatea on Jan 21, 2011 11:40:34 GMT
I will add that we did usually get a free preview of the weekend's game on a Friday. I suspect that will come before the day is out.
|
|
|
|
Post by Millman on Jan 21, 2011 12:15:32 GMT
All good points. But at the end of the day there are only a finite amount of people who will be prepared to subscribe to a pay per view service. This is usually a smaller percentage than those who would use a free service.
Now while the club benefits from the pay per view subscribers directly as rightly pointed out already they almost certainly also benefit from free to view users in a more indirect manner. If free to view are put off using the site then this reduces the target market for the other advertising the site contains. Do any of us know if PTV monitor and reward visitor traffic in addition to the Pay per view stuff?
A balance must be maintained between the two different options. Unfortunately it seems now the balance has swung from one way to completely the other. Maybe its a Rookie mistake, but which ever way you look at it it isn't ideal if it is putting the more casuals off the site.
|
|
|
|
Post by The Fence End on Jan 21, 2011 12:57:21 GMT
Out of the 18 articles (excluding promotions) on the website this week, only 5 were free to view.
T
|
|
|
|
Post by Ricky Otto on Jan 21, 2011 13:07:48 GMT
At risk of melodramatic, going on there as a non-YP subscriber, it almost feels like trawling through spam!
ps Id like to congratulate them for providing more content for the YP subscribers though. Just maybe some balance or presentation amendments required
|
|
|
|
Post by wingwongox on Jan 21, 2011 13:24:31 GMT
At only £3.99 per month I don't see the issue..
I know we are in hard times but for the price of just over a pint a month it is just shouldn't be an issue. As an exile - all be it a close one - it is worth paying the monthly fee just to listen to the odd game I can't make. Enough free content is still being posted
If they were charging £10+ / month then I might understand the complaints..
|
|
