NP$ System Revaluation - Important

[RJ]

Just wanted to make a thread here to make sure everyone's seen the NP$ announcement here:

http://www.namepros.com/namepros-info-and-suggestions-announcements.html

I noticed it didn't allow for comments when I posted it as a forum announcement.

Discuss here if you want!

RJ

 

[Ross]

Excellent point Ross, assumed for auctions, RJ and the bank did not buy your names in auction. Again I would say the points are being argued in reverse. The majority in the NP economy focused on .02, but this was a bank buyout the bank never said assume .02 it said bid .012.

No but NamePros was acknowledging that .02 is the "Solid" rate for NP$ during a NP$ to USD transaction. Isn't that what was done, a conversion?

 

[equity78]

Pound I am there with you on that and that is a separate discussion IMO,

 

[Michael]

The bank buyout rate doesn't matter at all, because you didn't have to sell back to the bank to cash out. If you had 1,000 NP$ ($20), you could have spent it on a $20 domain, you could have bought a bunch of linkbuilding, you could have bought a logo, you could have registered a few domains, etc. That's also why the rate that members sold NP$ to each other at doesn't matter. 1,000 NP$ could buy you $20 worth of goods/services, and now it can't. That is a problem.

 

[Pound]

Pound I am there with you on that and that is a separate discussion IMO,

In my opinion, however, it isn't. RJ used $0.2 in the auctions and whenever people thought of NP$ they thought of $0.2 during the entire time I've been here, even at times when it was trading for less. Therefore, an NP$, no matter what it was selling for in the NP$ exchange, was seen as worth $0.2. Of course, this was often for the sake of clarity and simplicity (which this transition would help), however, it doesn't change the fact that 1NP$ always equalled $0.2.

 

[Jennifer]

Well said Eric!

I was a member of this forum long before I became a mod/staff/MSR... I always felt that I was getting much more than I was giving in this community. It was free to join, free to participate, and on top of it all... there were bonus perks.

I too, stand by RJ and the admin team 100%... this forum has been here for me when I've needed it most... and I will do the same for it... and for them... the amazing people that allow us to get together... to do business, to make money, to chit chat, and whatever else we do here!

Namepros.com :loveyou:

Pound, Michael - again just to confirm, the negative rep. you guys originally got in this thread did not come from a moderator.

As far as NP$ - I'm not going to argue either way. I'll stand by RJ whatever his decision may be, because I do believe he has this forums', and it's members', best interests at heart - he always has.

Here's to hoping we can eventually get things settled and move on.

 

[sufi]

That's because $20 per 1000np$ was the market rate.. It could change anytime because market was controlling it, not RJ..

 

[Michael]

So you're telling me something happened in the last few days in the "market" that made 1,000 = $17 instead of $20? Nothing in the market happened, the only thing that happened was RJ had it changed to 0.017 to reflect what it was trading for in the secondary market, which as has been said many times before, was not the correct way of looking at it because the secondary market will always trade for less than face value.

Jennifer, I agree with everything you and Eric have said. NamePros is an incredible place to share ideas, and RJ should be rewarded for creating such a great place. However, no matter how cool RJ or NamePros is (and they are both very cool), that doesn't mean everyone should give an involuntary donation of 15% under the guise of a "revaluation".

If you feel RJ isn't being compensated enough, donate some money. Donate your time as a mod/staff (I have done both). Support him charging a fee for using NamePros (I'd glady pay it). But don't support an involuntary donation.

Equity, forum currencies only get complicated when people try to confuse the issue by pretending it is actually a currency with real value. It's only value is in the agreed upon conversion to USD. If there is no agreement, it all falls apart.

This is an important thing to note, 1NP$ = $0.02 USD was a conversion, not an exchange rate. It's like converting Fahrenheit to Celsius, or pounds to ounces. It is not like converting USD to Canadian dollars, where the ratio fluctuates based on the GDP, CPI, and other factors at play in the economies of the two countries. NP$ had no value other than its relationship to the dollar, which shouldn't have changed.

 

[equity78]

Virtual currencies become very complicated, start out with great intention but get complicated. If 20 members right now with $200 in their account say RJ send me a Paypal. You think he got $4000 waiting in his paypal for that? This whole discussion has taught me never link a forum currency to having a monetary value, use it for forum things like a sticky or highlighing a thread but once you put it to real money it is way too out of hand.

---------- Post added at 10:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:39 AM ----------

Michael this conversion has made it very real, Do you think RJ has the paypal balance right now to handle just 20 members with $200 in their np account ? What if 100 people after reading this thread said let me get my money out. 100 with an average balance of $75 ?

 

[-REECE-]

I completely agree Jennifer! I had to pay $300 to have the same privileges at another domain forum that I have here for free

If it was really about the money, RJ could have switched to paid memberships a L-O-N-G time ago, but he didn't.

Well said Eric!

I was a member of this forum long before I became a mod/staff/MSR... I always felt that I was getting much more than I was giving in this community. It was free to join, free to participate, and on top of it all... there were bonus perks.

I too, stand by RJ and the admin team 100%... this forum has been here for me when I've needed it most... and I will do the same for it... and for them... the amazing people that allow us to get together... to do business, to make money, to chit chat, and whatever else we do here!

Namepros.com :loveyou:

 

[-MGS-]

This thread is getting way out of hand.

When w esigned up w eknew that NPs could change at any time, it was a free incentive for us all, then we started to buy NPs etc by members choice.

At times the NP economy has to be managed for the good of the community and that is the case here, the changes that have been made will allow NamePros to grow and not get dragged down by the old NP$.

-RJ- you don't need to make any changes to anyone account balance, members are just trying to get a quick $, The loss that w ehave all made by the change is a good one as it has brought everything into line.

But hey, we need to get all NamePros user, the selfish ones in some peoples eyes, to come here to add their view, to shut some members up...midn you even if we all did, they would still chat on till the days end

..He will know who he is, thanks for the neg rep, didnt you say near the start that peopel should put their names when they neg rep?


NamePros rules

 

[Michael]

I completely agree Jennifer! I had to pay $300 to have the same privileges at another domain forum that I have here for free

If it was really about the money, RJ could have switched to paid memberships a L-O-N-G time ago, but he didn't.

Reece, you're a great guy that has done a lot for me (just as NamePros has done a lot for all of us). If you reached into my wallet and took out 15% of my cash, I wouldn't say "Hey, Reece is awesome, I'll just overlook it." If you came to me and said "Hey Mike, I'm in a bind, I need $100" I'd give it to you without batting an eye.

If RJ asks for a donation because NP is hurting, I'll gladly pay whatever I can afford. If RJ decides to charge a membership fee, I'll gladly pay it. But if RJ takes my money without my consent, I'll be up in arms. That is stepping over a line that shouldn't be crossed, and being a great guy doesn't excuse it.

I respect your loyalty, and that of Jennifer, Eric, Galel, and all the other mods/staff... but you should also have loyalty to the individuals that make NamePros such a great place to be. And they're all getting shafted while many stand by and applaud it.

I've said what I needed to say and made my points very clear. I don't see any point in continuing this because it is just me repeating myself over and over again. Whatever RJ decides, I'll still love this place more than any other forum on the internet. I'll just be sure never to buy into the forum currency again, because it is being mismanaged.

Edit: To be clear, I'm not saying by any means that RJ did this knowingly or with malicious intent, I could never think that about RJ. I'm just saying supporting this because he is a great guy is wrong. I believe it was just an honest mistake because forum money is confusing. But with everything I've presented, if it really wasn't about the money, then I would expect it to be fixed.

@MGS - Do you really think I've wasted this much time arguing against this because I wanted to make $9.22? I donated all my money to RJ to show that is not my intention, and to show him how much I appreciate the work put into NP. I don't have a stake in this being fixed any more... but I'm still here.

 

[Michelle]

The services will return You will still be able to buy them only if you up the conversion the rates will just raise so I dont see what the problem is also..... RJ gave weeks of notice for anyone to cash in at the higher rate if they wanted..

 

[Pound]

This thread is getting way out of hand.

When w esigned up w eknew that NPs could change at any time, it was a free incentive for us all, then we started to buy NPs etc by members choice.

At times the NP economy has to be managed for the good of the community and that is the case here, the changes that have been made will allow NamePros to grow and not get dragged down by the old NP$.

-RJ- you don't need to make any changes to anyone account balance, members are just trying to get a quick $, The loss that w ehave all made by the change is a good one as it has brought everything into line.

But hey, we need to get all NamePros user, the selfish ones in some peoples eyes, to come here to add their view, to shut some members up...midn you even if we all did, they would still chat on till the days end

..He will know who he is, thanks for the neg rep, didnt you say near the start that peopel should put their names when they neg rep?


NamePros rules

You say 'a quick $'. Michael has shown this is obviously not the case by donating all his funds to RJ.

Also, for people who say that the change in exchange rate would only make the price of services go up...fine! That at least gives us the option to not buy a service. This revaluation, however, is giving us no choice in the matter.

-MGS-, your sarcastic tone is also comepletely out of place as your argument is entirely nonsensical - you have said nothing but 'NP is amazing and everything that happens is for the best'. At least give a reason why you think this devaluing of the $ works in the members' best interest.

AGAIN, I would have no qualms if, now it is a fixed currency, it also goes up and down with the market on a live basis. After all, you have chosen to choose the exchange rate at the worst economic period I have ever experienced and therefore it is only fair that this goes back up to its previous highs.

 

[RJ]

NP$ Revaluation - June 1 Correction

Hey everyone....

I wanted to give an update on the NP$ situation and correct a few points that were brought up in this therad.

NamePros NP$ were created to reward member participation. NP$ has been given out free to members for posting or to moderators as a bonus. Most NP$ in the system did NOT originate from bank purchases.

NP$ were redeemable for domain name and forum related services from the NamePros store. It worked well for a time because members and moderators were contributing to the building of our community and would allow us to generate revenue by offering advertising. This no longer is the case. Our advertising revenue simply does not cover enough to subsidize this program.

Domain registrations and renewals at NamePros cost our company actual US dollars. In fact it's been our biggest expense in running this site since we're basically providing more for registrations and renewal to eNom than we realize in value for giving out the NP$ in the first place.

When we offer advertising services purchasable by NP$ (now revaluated and known as your NP Account Balance), we do so knowing it will replace cash flow we could have had by requiring traditional payment methods.

The NP management team has met and discussed the NP$ issue at length this past week. While we feel strongly that the market rate of $.017/NP$ was a fair rate to revaluate NP$ at when switching to our new Account Balance system, we also acknowledge that some members are disappointed at the revaluation because $.02/NP$ was a commonly perceived exchange rate for converting NP$ to US Dollars.

In the interest of fairness and promoting better community relations, we will offer a one-time award to all members equal to the difference between a $.02/NP$ valuation and the $.017/NP$ valuation that you've already received. This will be retroactively based on the NP$ balance each member held on April 30/May 1.

Because the current valuation is in effect now and this could be seen as a market adjustment, these awards will be given out starting June 1 to give us 14 days to notify all NP members.

Until that date you can still transact with your current NP Account Balance without changing the amount of the revaluation bonus available to you on June 1.

Let me be as upfront as possible and let you know now that we will not be able to offer domain registrations and renewals as low as a $8 price point as I had hoped. This rate will continue for the rest of May. We will try to keep prices of NamePros services as low possible while working on maintaining the financial stability of our community.

I will post a formal notice about this on NamePros.com on Friday May 15th and will be sending an email to all members before June 1.

It is my hope that this compromise will help smooth over what has been a difficult transition and put this matter to rest so we can focus on our development efforts.

Ron

 

[Dean]

Good to see a decision made and more importantly good to see that a proper discussion was allowed with both sides able to present their views without any censorship.

 

[Sam]

RJ,

It is funny people argue about this. Literally, who gives a hoot, compare this to the other forum which charges $50 for "membership", and people want to complain about chump change?!?

RJ can EASILY pimp out namepros and make mad money $$$. It says a lot about him that he hasnt.

 

[Michael]

Thanks RJ, for not only letting us discuss this freely, but for taking our opinions into consideration. Also thanks to Pound and Dean (and others) for taking time out of your day to contribute.

 

[Eric]

Ok guys, can we move on past the neg. rep, etc? Neg. rep is there for the same reason pos. rep is. If you agree you agree, if you don't you don't. But, let's not abuse it (and no, this is not directed at any one person).

Changes are being implemented, that's the important thing. Let's keep our focus on improving NP :tu:

 

[Pred]

where did the np$ balances go?

i dont see in my profile or cp anymore??

 

[Joe]

where did the np$ balances go?

i dont see in my profile or cp anymore??

Probably just an accidental change in the postbit.


As for me, I am happy to even be on a forum where NP$ were available for free, at no expense to me. I will accept any conversation rate as it will be better than the $0/0NP$ I started out with. Thank you RJ.

 

[Gene]

Thank you Ron for adding that clarity and for a resolution that should accommodate everyone. Above and beyond, as usual!

Hey everyone....

I wanted to give an update on the NP$ situation and correct a few points that were brought up in this therad.

NamePros NP$ were created to reward member participation. NP$ has been given out free to members for posting or to moderators as a bonus. Most NP$ in the system did NOT originate from bank purchases.

NP$ were redeemable for domain name and forum related services from the NamePros store. It worked well for a time because members and moderators were contributing to the building of our community and would allow us to generate revenue by offering advertising. This no longer is the case. Our advertising revenue simply does not cover enough to subsidize this program.

Domain registrations and renewals at NamePros cost our company actual US dollars. In fact it's been our biggest expense in running this site since we're basically providing more for registrations and renewal to eNom than we realize in value for giving out the NP$ in the first place.

When we offer advertising services purchasable by NP$ (now revaluated and known as your NP Account Balance), we do so knowing it will replace cash flow we could have had by requiring traditional payment methods.

The NP management team has met and discussed the NP$ issue at length this past week. While we feel strongly that the market rate of $.017/NP$ was a fair rate to revaluate NP$ at when switching to our new Account Balance system, we also acknowledge that some members are disappointed at the revaluation because $.02/NP$ was a commonly perceived exchange rate for converting NP$ to US Dollars.

In the interest of fairness and promoting better community relations, we will offer a one-time award to all members equal to the difference between a $.02/NP$ valuation and the $.017/NP$ valuation that you've already received. This will be retroactively based on the NP$ balance each member held on April 30/May 1.

Because the current valuation is in effect now and this could be seen as a market adjustment, these awards will be given out starting June 1 to give us 14 days to notify all NP members.

Until that date you can still transact with your current NP Account Balance without changing the amount of the revaluation bonus available to you on June 1.

Let me be as upfront as possible and let you know now that we will not be able to offer domain registrations and renewals as low as a $8 price point as I had hoped. This rate will continue for the rest of May. We will try to keep prices of NamePros services as low possible while working on maintaining the financial stability of our community.

I will post a formal notice about this on NamePros.com on Friday May 15th and will be sending an email to all members before June 1.

It is my hope that this compromise will help smooth over what has been a difficult transition and put this matter to rest so we can focus on our development efforts.

Ron

 

[Pred]

well the np$ balance has disappeared altogether, i cant see it

makes awkward as trying to get np$ from 3 members who i paid equivalent of $3 each.
even if they are trying to send now, they cant

also where has the itrader rating gone?

is it just me, or has it disappeared?

thanks

 

[Pound]

RJ - This resolution sounds perfect. Thanks once again for controlling the community in a calm, focussed manner!

 

[NPQueen]

well the np$ balance has disappeared altogether, i cant see it

makes awkward as trying to get np$ from 3 members who i paid equivalent of $3 each.
even if they are trying to send now, they cant

also where has the itrader rating gone?

is it just me, or has it disappeared?

thanks

There seems to be a bug of some sort, we are looking to resolve the missing NamePros Balance and iTrader Rating ASAP. :talk:

 

[Pred]

There seems to be a bug of some sort, we are looking to resolve the missing NamePros Balance and iTrader Rating ASAP. :talk:

cheers Queenie

sorted

also thanks to Sir.RJ for sorting the prob I had with overpayment to some members other week
much appreciated