Comments on: Wowio

By: AD

AD — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:30:58 +0000

Wowio is still closed to Europe (and the rest of the non-US world).

They claim it is a matter of licensing, that they can’t get the authors to sign over worldwide distribution rights.

Since several authors have stated in public that they requested their work to be made available everywhere but Wowio didn’t let them do that, that story seems false.

Personally I think it is a matter of advertising. It is easier for them to sell ads in the books if they have a well-defined audience (Internet-savvy US residents).

Include a bunch of Europeans with questionable commercial ad value to local US companies and Wowio would have to start segmenting which ads get shown to what market.

By: Myth

Myth — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 22:25:30 +0000

Now that is an entirely legitimate complaint, and I can definitely understand why – especially given the nature of what they offer – such an attitude would turn one off even if they later fixed it.

By: PauricTheLodger

PauricTheLodger — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 13:10:06 +0000

The reason I don’t like Wowio is that people from Europe (i.e. me) can’t download any of the stuff. This may have changed in the last three months or so but I haven’t gone back to find out since. I can just as easily go through the archives of my favourite webcomics and then maybe buy a t-shirt if the mood strikes me. Granted, it might take a while to get here but at least then I’ll actually *have* something to wear as well, and probably funny too…

By: Myth

Myth — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:50:45 +0000

Hey, that’s fine – but that is one of three methods that are options for sign up. Yes, those methods are all pretty personal ones – because otherwise a single person could open dozens of accounts, and download the same comic dozens of time, with Wowio paying the creator for each such download. And as soon as several people do the same, their entire method of operation falls apart.

I understand not wanting to share your credit card number (though I don’t see why it is that much worse to do so here than when making a purchase.) But honestly – can you think of any decent alternative for identifying users and ensuring individuals can only open one account?

By: Rollory

Rollory — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:36:47 +0000

If I’m not choosing of my own free will to actually purchase something from them, they don’t fucking need my credit card number. Their stated or apparent motivation for asking for it is irrelevant. They don’t need it, and I don’t need them.