tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post2099159016370214607..comments2023-04-11T09:30:33.053-05:00Comments on zwei: Readability vs InstapaperAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00806905651584593110noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-30655688116593766822012-04-01T11:55:32.371-05:002012-04-01T11:55:32.371-05:00They take a 30% cut up front, but nobody knows whe...They take a 30% cut up front, but nobody knows whether that is enough, or they really need the unclaimed revenues to be profitable.<br /><br />This is not an opt-in service, this is an opt-out service. Like all such services, while it may certainly be a business model (and might be legal), it's slimey and even downright evil.<br /><br />I'm not actually a user of either service, and have no real horse in the race -- but it sure wouldn't be readability if I started to use one of them.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13040197709786868024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-76493793409495681342012-03-17T09:43:24.881-05:002012-03-17T09:43:24.881-05:00I'm intrigued, where is the flurry of posts?I'm intrigued, where is the flurry of posts?thenewpersonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-20355764730233001332012-03-16T00:20:21.821-05:002012-03-16T00:20:21.821-05:00Well, for one, for all his usability blog posts, e...Well, for one, for all his usability blog posts, etc, Marco could bloody hire someone to design a better web interface for Instapaper. His (homemade?) UI is ugly, non intuitive AND non capable. <br /><br />It's minimal, though, I'll give it that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-5000682518064545522012-03-15T08:24:38.768-05:002012-03-15T08:24:38.768-05:00No, they take a 30% cut of your subscription up fr...No, they take a 30% cut of your subscription up front to support their business. It doesn't rely on the number of publishers who fail to register with them.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00806905651584593110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-86303310563179778792012-03-14T20:11:54.269-05:002012-03-14T20:11:54.269-05:00So does Readability's business model rely on p...So does Readability's business model rely on publishers not knowing that there's money waiting for them, or does it rely on accruing interest on that money?<br /><br />In other words, would the business model fail if 100% of publishers took the money? If that's the case then its a bit dodgy. On the other hand, if they just make money from investign the money, then I think that's entirely legit.Stephennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-19216917058932976572012-03-14T09:17:59.735-05:002012-03-14T09:17:59.735-05:00Thank you for putting this into writing. Even apar...Thank you for putting this into writing. Even apart from the idea of making money for publishers, Readability is just a better-designed app than Instapaper on both iOS and the web. Good products should be recognized as such, even when they compete with our buds.iconmasterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03255802683478610482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-37277797197285186832012-03-14T09:01:47.879-05:002012-03-14T09:01:47.879-05:00I definitely understand where you are coming from....I definitely understand where you are coming from. In the end it all really depends on your personal feelings towards Readability. If you see them as panhandlers instead of a company with good intentions it's definitely going to change your opinion of what they need to do with their money. One thing that makes me feel like I'm not being swindled is the mere fact that Marco himself didn't see it as a scam. He now sees it as a business model with obvious issues, but from all of his discussions on Build and Analyze he hasn't changed his opinion on the sincerity of the service.<br /><br />I agree that it would benefit subscribers if they could easily distinguish who has registered and who hasn't. As for people who have opted out of the service, that's quite obvious. You get a nice big notice saying they have opted out, and Readability refuses to scrape the content. (see Ben Brooks site for example)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00806905651584593110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-285411786968032722012-03-14T02:19:43.962-05:002012-03-14T02:19:43.962-05:00Amen, brother. Exactly what I thought when Gruber ...Amen, brother. Exactly what I thought when Gruber (who I normally really respect) et al turned their guns on readability.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3104861764861064567.post-90103040947815238662012-03-14T02:18:05.547-05:002012-03-14T02:18:05.547-05:00I'd been leery of using Readability since befo...I'd been leery of using Readability since before they became a direct Instapaper competitor and I think you're a prime example of why. I don't mean this as a personal attack on you, but an unfavorable view of how Readability tries to represent itself to users. (Perhaps "tried" since their business model has apparently chaged now).<br /><br />You say that that Readability's money collection is an "opt-in service" and "the equivalent of a tip jar" for publishers.<br /><br />The opt-in is disingenuous. Sites don't opt-in to allow Readability to function. The article is formatted and saved, all while the user doesn't know if the site participates in Readability's revenue sharing. I don't know what percentage of sites I go to a) know about Readability b) participate with Readability c) have asked to "opt-out" of Readability. I don't know where my money is going and that just benefits Readability's bottom line.<br /><br />It's easy to say they collect 30% and 70% goes to publishers, but they don't provide users with actual hard numbers. Perhaps even if there was just an indicator -- small green tag showing it's a partner, an orange tag saying they currently have no knowledge/realtion, and a red tag saying they don't want to participate -- then I can decide for myself if my money is actually benefiting the sites I visit as opposed to going back to Readability after their 1 year publisher grace period.<br /><br />You see it as a tip jar. I see it as a panhandler standing in front of a store without the owner's knowledge or consent. The panhandler will tell you they only keep 30% but the other 70% can also be kept if the unknowing store owner doesn't ask for it.JCnoreply@blogger.com