premium MUST by subscription?

[tttedzeins]

I find this auto renewal not to my taste, especially when grouped with the other things GS has done. Contrary to what it says under my avatar, I have not been a PM for a few months.

The price of PM has not increased for over 10 years and is a paltry amount, if you cannot afford it try doing without a beer a month or cut down on a pack of cigarettes a month, that should cover it. It is high time for an increase and even $39.99 is not too much.

Price is not the point, it is the principle of the matter.

 

i'm confused, you're saying a) it's time for a price increase and price is not the point, in the same post ?

 

what will users gain by a 2x 3x or 10x increase for the subscription, in your view ?

 

To dumb it down for you....

$30 is cheap.

The price has been $30 for a long time despite ever increasing costs.

No matter the price it is the principle of the matter (ie. the auto renewal)

 

Users will gain continued access to geocaching, 'cos stuff like servers and bandwidth costs money. Money is derived from membership fees. "Money can be used for goods and services" like bandwidth, hosting, development, software and paying people to do stuff.

 

Hope this helps

Edited October 19, 2016 by tttedzeins

[tttedzeins]

I wasn't talking about a Geocaching Gift Card.

 

I was asking about a pre-paid Mastercard. I wanted to know what I should put in the "cardholder name" field. That's why I emailed GS and was told that they wouldn't accept a gift credit card, because the membership options were recurring. This confused the heck out of me because I could still (at that time) get the one-year non-renewing PM.

 

I usually put Valued Customer 'cos that is what is written on the card.

 

 

I don't think people understand what the concern is here. Or they wouldn't have posted such rude replies. Pretty shocking when you see who that kind of snarky attitude comes from. Very disappointing.

 

It's not whether we want to renew the PM or not, it's the underhanded way that GS took away a membership option.

 

 

Amen brother

 

I didn't know about being able to cancel the auto-renew. Thanks for letting me know about that.

 

yeah but you have to do it every time. I just won't bother any more.

[+bertuz]

Forced auto-renewal Premium Membership? Bye bye Premium, I will no longer be Premium!

[+llbaker]

Im with Bertuz, I will not submit to attempt to force me to auto renew my premium membership. Im of the opinion that this is an underhanded business practice and will not play along. Guess Im done with geocaching. To bad, really enjoy getting outdoors, using GPS and navigating in the back country. Will just move on to something else. Greed strikes again and for me has killed an enjoyable recreational pursuit.

[+cerberus1]

Im with Bertuz, I will not submit to attempt to force me to auto renew my premium membership. Im of the opinion that this is an underhanded business practice and will not play along. Guess Im done with geocaching. To bad, really enjoy getting outdoors, using GPS and navigating in the back country. Will just move on to something else. Greed strikes again and for me has killed an enjoyable recreational pursuit.

As you're a basic member now, you can still find unlimited caches, with no D/T limit either, if using a GPSr on the site (just no PMOs).

With an app, it's limited to full info on three per day (with D/T differences it seems, depending on which app).

No offense, but at 13 finds since '06, and no cache finds after '09, it seems you could be fine with that basic account for a while.

We've logged hundreds of finds with a basic membership.

[+noncentric]

Im with Bertuz, I will not submit to attempt to force me to auto renew my premium membership. Im of the opinion that this is an underhanded business practice and will not play along. Guess Im done with geocaching. To bad, really enjoy getting outdoors, using GPS and navigating in the back country. Will just move on to something else. Greed strikes again and for me has killed an enjoyable recreational pursuit.

As you're a basic member now, you can still find unlimited caches, with no D/T limit either, if using a GPSr on the site (just no PMOs).

With an app, it's limited to full info on three per day (with D/T differences it seems, depending on which app).

No offense, but at 13 finds since '06, and no cache finds after '09, it seems you could be fine with that basic account for a while.

We've logged hundreds of finds with a basic membership.

I have to agree with cerberus1. Unless llbaker is a non-logger, it seems s/he was "done with geocaching" over 6 years ago. Not sure what benefit a Premium Mebership would afford her/him.

 

Of course, no one has to participate in geocaching to 'get outdoors, use GPS and navigate in the back country'. Those activities can be done without caching, or by using alternate caching sites that don't have an auto-renewing subscription model. If someone isn't looking for a large database of cache options, then those alternate sites may be sufficient. Or there's Waymarking, which can be used as a Basic Member.

[+J Grouchy]

I've just sent them an email since my membership is up in a few days.

All they have to do is give us an option to choose auto-renew or one year only and I'd happily sign back up. My PM will lapse otherwise.

 

...it's the principle here.

[+hzoi]

I've just sent them an email since my membership is up in a few days.

All they have to do is give us an option to choose auto-renew or one year only and I'd happily sign back up. My PM will lapse otherwise.

 

...it's the principle here.

Better get your licks in on what/where while you can, then.

[+niraD]

I've just sent them an email since my membership is up in a few days.

All they have to do is give us an option to choose auto-renew or one year only and I'd happily sign back up. My PM will lapse otherwise.

 

...it's the principle here.

I went ahead and renewed last time. I want bookmark lists and full access to the API. But I did specifically disable the auto-renew after I renewed.

 

Yeah, it's the principle of the thing.

[+J Grouchy]

Question...do all my bookmark lists get purged when my PM lapses?

[+MartyBartfast]

Question...do all my bookmark lists get purged when my PM lapses?

 

No, at least they haven't for me when mine has lapsed a couple of times. Once I reinstated the PM all the bookmarks lists, notifications, and PQs were still there.

[+niraD]

Question...do all my bookmark lists get purged when my PM lapses?

No, at least they haven't for me when mine has lapsed a couple of times. Once I reinstated the PM all the bookmarks lists, notifications, and PQs were still there.

Yep. When my PM has lapsed, the premium features have been inaccessible. But as soon as I renewed my PM, they were all there again, perfectly intact.

[+J Grouchy]

I've just sent them an email since my membership is up in a few days.

All they have to do is give us an option to choose auto-renew or one year only and I'd happily sign back up. My PM will lapse otherwise.

 

...it's the principle here.

Better get your licks in on what/where while you can, then.

 

I hadn't realized that part of the forums became inaccessible once my PM lapsed.

Ah well.

 

Groundspeak is playing a sleazy game here and isn't the least bit sorry for it. If they want my $30, it's such a simple thing to do it's not even funny.

[+Optimist on the run]

I renewed recently by giving myself gift membership, but given the latest "improvements" to the map, I wish I hadn't bothered. I can get most PM features at Project GC instead.

[+MartyBartfast]

 

I hadn't realized that part of the forums became inaccessible once my PM lapsed.

 

 

I think it's only the "Off Topic" forum that is PM only, so I wouldn't imagine it will be a great loss.

[+J Grouchy]

Well, I was "gifted" another year by a generous family member. Couldn't very well turn it down, I guess.

 

I still have no problem calling them out on a seriously shady business practice and think their flippant responses to such complaints are actually bordering on offensive.

[TeamKitsune4]

We've been away from geocaching for a while, and it was very disappointing to find that a membership is required in order to log certain "advanced" 'caches. I realize that websites aren't free to maintain, but I would very much rather see the choices be ads vs. no ads than to have 'caches and 'cachers divided into "elite" and "peasant" classes. Unfortunately, the system is also being abused by some who've marked easily-accessed 'caches as "advanced". Logging 'caches should be free for everyone, and Groundspeak should find other ways to profit from the hobby.

[+Squirrel777]

What a dishonest and doubtful business practice, shame on you Groundspeak.

 

I don't care we can cancel after buying, that's not the point. The option was there all those years (I know because I was a subscriber since 2006, wow 10 years already, time flies!) and you intentionally removed it probably in hopes some members would forget.

 

If you have a bit of respect for your paying members, you will kindly revert back to give us the option again and, I know it's hard, apologize. Because we all do mistakes.

 

P.S. I wonder how that can happen, I mean is this a one man decision, or, on a group meeting they all concluded it was the best thing to do? SERIOUSLY!

 

N.B. I see most of you complaining are still +Premium. Today is the last day you'll see the little + under my name because my membership ends today and I logged in today specifically to renew after receiving the email telling me it's about to expire. That should have been a routine but found this change I'm not happy with so I thought I'll let them know and act accordingly. I hope many of us can hold back and show we are the customers.

 

+1!!!! I agree totally

[Rhialto]

+1!!!! I agree totally

Thanks for quoting me... BTW you see I was saying that the little + would be gone? I don't know why it is still showing up here on the forum as I assure you I am no more a paying member.

 

Click my name and you will get to my profile proudly showing I'm standing by my initial decision.

 

And if they ever revert back someone will have to tell me or update this thread, otherwise I will never know.

[+cerberus1]

We've been away from geocaching for a while, and it was very disappointing to find that a membership is required in order to log certain "advanced" 'caches. I realize that websites aren't free to maintain, but I would very much rather see the choices be ads vs. no ads than to have 'caches and 'cachers divided into "elite" and "peasant" classes. Unfortunately, the system is also being abused by some who've marked easily-accessed 'caches as "advanced". Logging 'caches should be free for everyone, and Groundspeak should find other ways to profit from the hobby.

Logging all caches (even PMO) is still free to basic members, by simply using one of the "back-door" methods of logging.

Most we know still use geocachingadmin.com (type in GC#, and hit "log").

 

"Advanced" caches are merely caches that are non-traditional, and traditionals with a Difficulty/Terrain rating above 1.5/1.5.

Using a GPSr allows a basic member to access all caches (except pmo of course).

 

The restrictions are on the official phone app.

Restrictions for basic members (using an app only) have been around since the Intro app ('13 I believe...), and at that time had slightly higher caps of Difficulty at 2, and Terrain at 3.

[+Manville Possum]

We've been away from geocaching for a while, and it was very disappointing to find that a membership is required in order to log certain "advanced" 'caches. I realize that websites aren't free to maintain, but I would very much rather see the choices be ads vs. no ads than to have 'caches and 'cachers divided into "elite" and "peasant" classes. Unfortunately, the system is also being abused by some who've marked easily-accessed 'caches as "advanced". Logging 'caches should be free for everyone, and Groundspeak should find other ways to profit from the hobby.

 

Logging caches is free to everyone. There are even a few different ways to log PMO listings for basic members. I like project-gc.

 

Let's not look at it like elite and peasant class listings, it's more like paying members and freeloaders.

[Rhialto]

On 11/1/2016 at 11:18 AM, bertuz said:

Forced auto-renewal Premium Membership? Bye bye Premium, I will no longer be Premium!

 

Liar! ? Was browsing my emails and one brang me here after 3 years I see now...  funny how many of you are premium today!