Interesting email from HP today.

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   JerryFisherposted 2 weeks ago

   Hi Jerry,
   
   We are preparing to relaunch AxleAddict and will be offering a one-time buyout for select articles in the Discover HubPages Autos section to move to our new platform. If you are interested in learning more, please let me know.

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      bravewarriorposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      Interesting. Looks like they're opening another Parade section where writers need to pitch an idea in order to be paid for an article, if accepted.

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      OldRosesposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      If you take their "buyout" then they will own your articles and you will no longer receive any income from them.  All the future earnings will go to TAG.

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         bravewarriorposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         Thanks for the clarification, Caren!

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      Kenna McHughposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      Jerry, are you doing to take the offer?

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         JerryFisherposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         Depends on the offer Kenna. That hasn't been received yet.

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            Kenna McHughposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

            Makes sense, Jerry. Please keep us posted.

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      SerenityHaloposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      I am interested to learn more. If they’re buying your articles, it needs to come at a good deal. Compare prices to what other outlets would pay for your work.

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   Shesabutterflyposted 2 weeks ago

   Squeezing every last viable penny out of HP? I'm a bit surprised they are recreating AxleAddict when the last few niche sites were never fully rebranded (moved to the new platform). At least they are offering to pay for content this time.

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      JerryFisherposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      It could be that someone has threatened them with legal action after the move to Discover. That move was outright content theft, so maybe now, niche by niche, everyone will be given the opportunity to have their articles bought by HP to make the process legal. But expect only pennies though, and the articles will be chosen by them as ones they can profit with, otherwise will be dropped. I'm anticipating for admin purposes that they are now weary of the month by month payout.

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         Kenna McHughposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         Jerry, I suspect you are correct. TAG/HP has been quiet of late.

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         Shesabutterflyposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         I agree it was theft. However, I feel TAG covered themselves pretty well in their ToS. With Dengarden & Pethelpful currently running on Parade's platform, I suspect there has not been a legal issue.
         
         I'm curious if anyone is still earning from the 6 niches that were to move mid-April. With the only change being the write for us button removed from four of them, the sites are still on the HP platform (with Wehavekids & Delishably still churning out news). Which is indicated as much at the bottom of the page in the copywrite notice. Did we lose all our leverage in SERPS for nothing? Or did TAG move forward with taking author earnings despite never switching platforms?
         
         That could be, and in the interim the move to Discover helped quell any earnings from the remaining author articles. I only stuck around in the hope I'd reach payout, as I did not have far to go. If the last two months are any indication, I'll be here a while unfortunately.

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            SerenityHaloposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

            I assume they’ve run into some snags with their “endeavors”—whatever those happen to be.
            
            There is some sort of rule not to assume malice if stupidity will suffice. I believe behind the scenes there is no plan, and they’re spitballing ideas. I think at first the move to Discover was for authority scores as many of the niches had poor ones, and then they thought to separate our niches from HubPages for TAG’s platform. I don’t know if they intended to take Owlcation, Delishably, and others originally until they needed more content to help in the emergency that is their stock price. We can blame this whole crisis on what happened with Sports Illustrated.
            
            Now I think they’re looking through Discover in a panic to save more content for themselves. Because it seems like a pivot to me—“Oh, wait, there were more niches that could have been taken. How do we backtrack and get them?”
            
            I keep hoping they’ll be done scraping for parts and will sell HubPages to someone who knows how to run the platform WITH share revenue. It’s not looking great though. Maybe they won’t sell and instead will demolish HP to make the parts more under their control, micromanaged into oblivion.
            
            My earnings took a nosedive with the latest niche takeover. There isn’t a reason to keep writing here, but I spent a lot of time building here, and before things went nuts, it was a decent paycheck. Kind of hoping for a surprise resurrection.

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               Shesabutterflyposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

               I have no doubt there is lack of direction. Every move or lack thereof has felt like TAG is flying by the seat of their pants. In panic mode, trying to right a failing ship.
               
               Pethelpful is still a bit of a mess seven months later. Eleven days ago there was at least one category coming back with a 404 error, which has since been corrected. However, that page still does not flow well and the site as a whole is missing a search bar.
               
               I didn't expect them to have a plan, but I assumed the sites would be moved en masse and reworked over time as we are seeing with the other two. Maybe I'm simply bitter about losing rank for what seems like nothing, as the sites have yet to change. Although, I'm sure they managed to find a way to cut off earnings for author's pre-move.
               
               Honestly, I'm a bit surprised they did not initially keep AxleAddict considering TAG has an auto blog they either could have combined with or expanded their platform from. Too focused on niches within the Parade family perhaps.
               
               A resurrection from a buyout would have been ideal. I didn't make nearly as much as some, but I at least hit payout every month for a few years before the demise. It was a nice way to save for birthdays & holidays. I tried starting my own website, but I'm finding I do not understand the inner workings even with a website builder. It likely will not be for me. It was fun while it lasted.

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         Genna Eastposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         Interesting comment, Jerry.  My rep advised me that the notices they emailed to us regarding the option to move our content from the niche sites to Discover was necessary in order for them to avoid a class-action lawsuit by the authors/copyright owners of the publications on those sites.

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            Kenna McHughposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

            Genna and Jerry, even so, a writer or group of writers can still file.

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               Genna Eastposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

               Hi Kenna...  My rep added something about assuming the implication or inference of "ownership" without the full knowledge and permission of the author.

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                  Kenna McHughposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

                  I hear you. But someone could make the move and give them a scare.

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                     Genna Eastposted 11 days agoin reply to this

                     Absolutely.

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                        Miebakagh57posted 11 days agoin reply to this

                        They would have had listen to us writers and implement certain of our suggestions. As we writers here are stalk holders, they carry us along. Instead, HubPages acts as an alpha god. Bad.

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   Miebakagh57posted 2 weeks ago

   The best of hubpages is gone.

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