Is there a possibility for Hubpages to close down?

1. 82

   cianekoposted 11 years ago

   Is there a possibility for Hubpages to close down?
   
   In a range of 1-5, how would you rate the possibilities?

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2. 39

   Sweet Chococarrieposted 11 years ago

   not far to happen specially of the strict standards all the time

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3. 59

   Goody5posted 11 years ago

   This is a very interesting question, which has popped up from visitors on a hub of mine - http://goody5.hubpages.com/hub/Google-vs-the-Hub-Pages I've been keeping track of the stats since last year, and the numbers aren't very favorable for the hub pages right now.

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4. 65

   tnvrstarposted 11 years ago

   Nothing is impossible when it comes to online Business. So yes there is a possibility. But the possibility is very very slim. Hubpages is the leading revenue sharing site which is maintaining high quality.

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5. 37

   wqaindiaposted 11 years ago

   No, not at all. Hubpages finds favors with Google Crawlers and its member base in increasing everyday. HP can shut doors for undisciplined members. How can a  automated treasurer of knowledge can close down. Foundation of HP is strong and its pillars are stronger.

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   1. 87

      Rock_njposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      HubPages is actually losing writers at an alarming rate, see: http://goody5.hubpages.com/hub/Google-vs-the-Hub-Pages for the stats.  Most likely HubPages would be sold rather than shut down.  Who knows what the new owners would be like?

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   2. 0

      Casimiroposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Actually, it's member base is declining, though you could argue that the members left produce higher quality writing ... maybe. Total views are flat or declining. I don't know where you get the info about how strong HP is.

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   3. 85

      SidKempposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Total view being stable is the source of income. Total views being stable with fewer writers is a good sign - the company is increasing revenue per hubber. I would like to know WQAIndia's sources, too.

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6. 61

   sm825posted 11 years ago

   Eventually it will but that will not be for awhile take Triond for example the standard for them is really low, and they are still up with all of the spam like articles.
   
   Also what wqaindia said is true Hubpages is one of the better/top websites of it's kind to write for.

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   1. 82

      cianekoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I also agree with wqaindia's statement. Hubpages is simply one of the best writing website. The  features are great and the Hubpages community is so supportive and encouraging. Hubpages never failed to amaze me everyday!

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7. 64

   barbat79posted 11 years ago

   Honestly, I have no knowledge of the finances of Hubpages.  I hope not, yet like anything any business, it could.   I don't think it will, however  Rating from 1 being unlikely to 5 highly likely, I say 2.5...a guess based on no knowledge...does someone have any facts to share?

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8. 79

   Uninvited Writerposted 11 years ago

   Hubpages will last longer if it has strict standards rather than if it had none. Any site can close down... any time. The same with any other business.

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9. 76

   CloudExplorerposted 11 years ago

   I personally don't think our HP writers network will ever shut down, but this hub article is a level headed response to the issue we are dealing with in real time, and precautions taken to prevent it. read more

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10. 53

    Brett.Tesolposted 11 years ago

    Very unlikely, especially when you consider the share of each hubbers earnings. Seriously, just the top hubbers earn thousands per year. Across the network, earnings must have HUGE! As they get a large share of this, this is a profitable business for both hubbers and the owners. Just keep writing quality content and share it externally (Twitter, FB, etc) to make sure Hubpages stays popular and increases its traffic.

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    1. 69

       Lauryallanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Where are you getting that info? The graphs were removed from the success stories when their traffic fell by 80% and their income declined in line with this. Sorry to burst your bubble but many of the success stories have moved their hubs elsewhere..

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    2. 53

       Brett.Tesolposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I checked the top hubbers section and those hubbers are still all there and active, at least the top 10 (I didn't check all). You also have to consider the sheer number of members making money. I've been seeing increasing traffic since personal URLs

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    3. 82

       cianekoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       You offered me a great idea Brett. Tesol! Thank you.

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11. 83

    lex123posted 11 years ago

    I feel the chances of closing down is very minimum. If at all they decide to close it down I'm sure they will let us know well in advance.

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12. 84

    sparksterposted 11 years ago

    No chance, at least not yet.  HP will always attract writers because they are simply the best writing website on the internet as far as I am concerned, I have tried all the others.  Additionally, sometimes when I googling for information I often get the best results from Hubpages.  Furthermore, Hubpages boasts a massive amount of content and the content and spam filters, etc make sure that high quality shines through.  I seriously think Hubpages are onto something, there will also be people looking to get their work published and the tools needed are integrated.
    
    Another good thing about Hubpages is that those people who publish hubs but only make a half-hearted effort or are not serious enough about their writing and are just looking to make a quick buck will end up failing for being rated low.  However, Hubpages is a convenient platform for serious writers and their methods help bring those talented writers to the forefront.

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    1. 82

       cianekoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I totally agree with you, sparkster.

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13. 61

    sunilkunnoth2012posted 11 years ago

    It will never happen as HP is such a vast and well oiled organization.  It will improve even further and achieve many goals in the near future.

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14. 83

    Joelipooposted 11 years ago

    Anything is possible, but I think there is a slim chance of Hubpages actually closing down.

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15. 87

    Rock_njposted 11 years ago

    There is always the possibility that HubPages could close down (and it could happen without notice, no reason to think they would notify anyone in advance).  HubPages certainly has been experiencing a lot of technical problems lately, and an exodus of writers for various reasons, which is why this question is a good one to ask.  More likely, HubPages would sell their business rather than shut down.  This site has to be worth something and would be worth selling to someone else with money to invest its IT infrastructure to make it run more smoothly.  I would give it a 3 out of 5 chance that HP gets sold over the next year.  Shutting down entirely, I would give a 0 to 1 out of 5 chance (not likely).

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    1. 82

       cianekoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I was urged to ask such  question because  I find Hubpages' features more than enough-specially that it is providing us online writers all the opportunities to write, be read and most especially, earn. I have no plans of writing for another sites.

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16. 60

    LoisRyan13903posted 11 years ago

    Well if they do I hope they do what Associated Content did-sell to another company.  But I am not sure.  If they stay with meeting the customers changes needs, wants and demands they will no a slim to none chance.  I actually joined HP a few years ago and canceled my membership since they wouldn't allow me to publish duplicate articles.  I understand now why they had that rule and agree to it.

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17. 0

    Vickiwposted 11 years ago

    This is a very ambiguous question . Without knowing the financial situation, and the goals of the company, how could anyone know? I think serious writers appreciate the chance to write and earn. Some appreciate the chance simply to write. My personal experience makes me think there are many fantastic writers and friends out there, hopefully enough of us to encourage HP to continue their good work of screening and making sure that the quality is there for on line searchers.

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    1. 76

       CloudExplorerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I agree with you 100% Vickiw, I just unleashed a hub answer that points out this truest premise as well, us dedicated authors here love this networking community, and would never want such a thing to occur. We aren't just here for the earnings.

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    2. 0

       Vickiwposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Just read your article, it is great. Lots of interesting links there too. Emphasise the positive - get rid of the negatives!

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18. 59

    Highvoltagewriterposted 11 years ago

    I do not see this happening in the near future....However, business come and go; it all depends how well they adapt to changing times!

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19. 85

    Jlbowdenposted 11 years ago

    It's highly unlikely, because of the overall revenue that it receives from google for one.  And besides there is always a constant steam of high quality content produced here at a steady rate, to keep search engines active and in turn even giving Hubpages more operating income.

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20. 85

    SidKempposted 11 years ago

    As a business analyst, I lack the information to rate likelihood. But as a business strategist, I can say that HubPages clearly has a viable and robust business model. The key for survival is the ad revenue received, not the number of successful hubbers. I have strong faith in the HubPages business model and in the sanity of the management. Based on what I do know, I'm confident HubPages will stay open. It would be good to know more, perhaps a State of the Hub Union report? (And it says a lot that, if HubPages put one out, I would believe it.)

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21. 67

    Dale Hydeposted 11 years ago

    I would give a rating of 3.75 based on technical difficulties they are having, a drastic drop in page views over the past year, and many writers leaving because of the many, ever changing policies and practices, taking with them their unique articles.

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22. 77

    LuisEGonzalezposted 11 years ago

    It is more likely that HubPages is sold to another outfit than for it to shut down. It is the best online writing platform out there so far as I am concerned and my opinion is shared by many. But like we have seen in the past a bigger outfit may just tender an offer they can't refuse.
    
    HP makes mistakes (like this idling fiasco) but they seem to be doing everything that they can to improve the site and you can tell that they are serious about what they do. It can only get better from what I have seen. So my hat (if I had one) is off to them for their efforts.

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    1. 66

       Lady Guinevereposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Hubpages has already been sold to another person.  That was when I started seeing the most changes.  IMHO when it really started to get bad was when, someone who doesn't have an account here any longer, started the 30 day challenge.

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    2. 85

       SidKempposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Lady G, please help us out with some dates. What year did this sale occur?

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23. 79

    Wayne Brownposted 11 years ago

    I have not heard anything specific or general for that matter but it is fair to assume that any business can go under at any time for a multitude of reasons thus the HP is not immuned.  ~WB

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24. 91

    mactaversposted 11 years ago

    There have been so many quirky things that have happened in the last six months, that I have not been writing as many Hubs as the beginning of last year. To me it seems that more outside factors are controlling what happens than the owners of Hub Pages.  I think that its possible to have a shut down.

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25. 69

    Lauryallanposted 11 years ago

    There is a possibility of any company closing down. It's all about income versus expenditure. Does Hubpages make enough to cover it's expenses and then some? How close is Hubpages to break even rather than profit? Again there is no way to tell this, but it is easy to see that Hubpages may have lower profit levels at the moment.
    Why do I say this? For a number of reasons.
    1. The success stories have spoken about how they have lost the majority of their income. (Hubpages removed the graphs and left the outdated text which is misleading) As the most profitable people on the site this means that Hubpages has also lost a lot too. Think of these people as the top 20% that make 80% of Hubpages income (Pareto's Law). Some of these popular hubs have now been removed and taken elsewhere. Many of these same people are no longer writing on Hubpages and I have seen them begin/add to their article collection elsewhere.
    2. The Apprenticeship program is in it's infancy and costing money. HP now pay writers to teach them how to write. Seems weird when you had highly successful writers that are/have jumped ship and didn't cost any money to train up. How long does it take for HP to get a return on the outlay spent on training these writers? What's to stop these same writers from taking that knowledge and writing elsewhere instead?
    3. If visitor numbers are down to the site, then ad revenue is highly likely to be affected.
    4. HP has a balancing act to perform to make money. It needs to keep it's writers happy (not doing a good job on this front - hence the exodus of writers) and keep Google happy. If they continue to fail on these fundamentals then yes the site could be sold/shut down.
    5. The fact that people are even asking this question makes it obvious that people think HP could be in trouble. If the signs are obvious to the users...

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26. 63

    mackyiposted 11 years ago

    Hub-pages is a business; and like any other businesses, they too can experience financial difficulties that may lead to them going under. However, let's all hope and pray that they will not experience any serious financial or administrative issues that will lead to them closing shop! Based on the above premise, of logical thinking, I would rate the possibilities of them closing down: 2.5/5.0.

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27. 0

    number2sonposted 11 years ago

    I really have no idea.  Vickiw had a good answer to it.  Let's hope it stays around a while.

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28. 48

    Ericdierkerposted 11 years ago

    Yes, as we know it.  They are too closely linked to Google. If Google in an arbitrage type maneuver, determined to "clawback" or extend a hold on releasing funds to HP they could be "closed" down very quickly. I can only assume that HP has about a 90 reserve enough to continue operating under that kind of pressure, give or take a quarter.
    Why it would happen would be that Google could then swoop in and buy it for pennies on the dollar. Why it would/will not happen? Google makes more money in this current fashion or Google are really good folks who just love us writers.
    
    A solid 4 for within the year.

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29. 69

    LauraD093posted 11 years ago

    As I make very little income here the writers not the site itself would be greatly missed if this does happen. Although after exploring several other sites I do know know that hubpages is the most user friendly and has the higher caliber of writers. Those writing on other sites seem more "sales-oriented" then focused on the craft.

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30. 72

    d.williamposted 11 years ago

    anything is possible, but let's hope not.  this question poses another thought.  If they did close down without warning all of our hubs, articles, and personal thoughts would be lost.
    It might be prudent to make a hard copy of all hubs written, or at least save them to a DVD-RW
    P.S.: your range of 1-5 cannot be answered properly unless we know if #1 or #5 is the lowest or the highest in possibilities.

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31. 0

    GoldenThreadPressposted 11 years ago

    I don't believe that HubPages will ever fold, even if Google pulls every ad. Besides knowing how hard HP staff are working to keep the site working smoothly and updated, I can't imagine them ever wanting to close the doors. That being said, could Google penalize them with lower ad rates? That is always a possibility and not something that HP would have any control over. Still HubPages has weathered many storms and they will do so again and again. This is just the ways of the Internet. Nothing is static out here in Internet Land. Change is always imminent and constant. But HubPages is here to stay. I'm certain of it. (P.S. Note: My opinion, of course. And, no, I'm not an HP staff member just a Happy Hubber   Best Regards --Deb

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32. 80

    phillippeengelposted 11 years ago

    Any type of company can go bust. As for HubPages, the likelihood of it closing down is very slim. Hitherto, HubPages has a myriad of registered users and it has been the cornerstone for the publishing of creative writing and insightful articles. If HubPages were to close down, then hundreds of active users will definitely be enraged because such a useful service has ceased.

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