R.I.P., Themestream
Robotech_Master
doors--without paying its contributors anything for the most recent
pay period. People have 'til the end of April 12 to copy all their
articles down.
As Gilbert Gottfried put it in _Aladdin_, I think I'm about to have a
heart attack and die from not-surprise. When they pulled their "2
cents a read, and only from registered readers" stunt, then dismissed
their customer service department, I knew in my heart they were not
long for this world.
Well, at least I made far more money than I ever expected--so I'm not
any poorer for the experience.
--
Chris Meadows aka | Co-moderator, rec.toys.transformers.moderated
Robotech_Master | Homepage: <URL:http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/>
robo...@eyrie.org | PGP: <URL:http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/rm.key.txt>
Themestream Writings: <URL:http://www.themestream.com/articles/151255.html>
Date: 11 Apr 2001 23:16:39 -0000
To: robo...@eyrie.org
From: edi...@themestream.com
Subject: Themestream Closes Its Doors
Dear Contributor,
Due to the current business climate, the Themestream web service will close
its doors on April 13, 2001. It has always been our pleasure to serve you.
And it hurts us to tell you that we are ceasing all business operations.
Themestream is in the process of trying to sell some or all of its assets
and negotiating with it's secured creditors. Although we won't know the
outcome of these negotiations until they are complete, we believe it is very
unlikely that we will be able to pay any other creditors- including
contributors. We will inform you if the situation changes. Otherwise, you
should assume you will not receive any further payments from us.
We will continue to abide by our privacy policy and will take all reasonable
steps to safeguard any of your personal information stored on our servers.
If you do not have back up copies of your articles, please go to the site -
http://www.themestream.com -- and copy and paste the text of your articles
into a document on your computer. Please do this by the end of the day of
April 12, 2001. In the meantime, we have stopped accepting new article
submissions.
Lastly, if you have any questions, please direct them to:
ques...@themestream.com
We hope that you have benefited from the Themestream service as much as we
have from your contributions. We wish you continued success in publishing.
Sincerely,
The Themestream Team
Ed
> Well, at least I made far more money than I ever expected--so I'm not
I made money, too, but they still owe me $402.68, and a helluva lot of
other people won't get their earnings.
Is there a lawyer in the house for a class-action suit?
Can we slap a lien on TS and sell off some of the "assets" they
mentioned in their last-minute apology and C-ya note?
Ed & ABINTRA PRESS! http://abintra.virtualave.net/
Gene-Michael Higney
news:3AD53F03.9D2@yaho-.com...
A class action suit is not a bad idea. While I never put up any of my
own work on Themestream, I made it a habit, as time permitted, to click
on the work of my fellow cpem writers as a way of supporting those who
posted here and indicated their work was available there. So speaking
as a reader as well as a writer, I am displeased that fellow authors
will be caught short and go unpaid. Especially since it was pretty
obvious a while ago TS were going to exit stage left. If they owe you,
Ed, such a hefty chunk of change, I'm wondering what they must owe other
contributors also.
It's really unfortunate that they didn't do the ethical thing and make
sure their authors' final pay period was covered.
Light the torches! Pile up the wood!
I'll bring the marshmallows.
Gene-Michael Higney
--
http://www.webspawner.com/users/higney/
http://shyflowersgarden.com/Higney/Default.htm
http://www.grannydragon.com/Weyr/books/SoundOff/higney/higney1.html
Robert Marcom
"Gene-Michael Higney" <shi...@dancris.com> wrote in message
news:tdc4o9i...@corp.supernews.com...
I wish they owed me hundreds of dollars. I wouldn't expect to see any of
it, but I'd like to have the bragging rights.
These are the people that addressed me with the salutation: "Dear Great
Author,"
I knew right away they weren't kosher. Only my wife ever calls me a great
author. and she always wants something...
<g>
Dan Birchall
> As stated in the following, Themestream is abruptly closing its
> doors--without paying its contributors anything for the most recent
> pay period. People have 'til the end of April 12 to copy all their
> articles down.
>
> As Gilbert Gottfried put it in _Aladdin_, I think I'm about to have a
> heart attack and die from not-surprise. When they pulled their "2
> cents a read, and only from registered readers" stunt, then dismissed
> their customer service department, I knew in my heart they were not
> long for this world.
>
> Well, at least I made far more money than I ever expected--so I'm not
> any poorer for the experience.
Ouch. I was expecting them to go down, but I had only earned any money
in the last pay period, and was hoping to get that (almost $400). Oh
well.
So... how's TheVines going? Anyone?
-Dan
--
Dan Birchall - Palolo Valley - Honolulu HI - http://dan.scream.org/
My addresses expire... take out the hex stamp if your reply bounces
Robotech_Master
your articles before you go down. You'll at least be able to claim
the "loss" on your taxes next year.
Ed
>
> "Ed" <abintrapress@yaho-.com> wrote in message
> > other people won't get their earnings.
> > Is there a lawyer in the house for a class-action suit?
> > Can we slap a lien on TS and sell off some of the "assets" they
> > mentioned in their last-minute apology and C-ya note?
> own work on Themestream, I made it a habit, as time permitted, to click
> on the work of my fellow cpem writers as a way of supporting those who
> posted here and indicated their work was available there. So speaking
> as a reader as well as a writer, I am displeased that fellow authors
> will be caught short and go unpaid. Especially since it was pretty
> obvious a while ago TS were going to exit stage left. If they owe you,
> Ed, such a hefty chunk of change, I'm wondering what they must owe other
> contributors also.
Well, gee, thanks. That was a lefty compliment of sorts. :)
Truth be, however, that back a ways a few of us in this NG started
bragging to each other about accrued TS earnings, and I'd expect you'd
be right to assume that they owe at least three other people more than
they owe me...
> It's really unfortunate that they didn't do the ethical thing and make
> sure their authors' final pay period was covered.
Couldn't expect ethics from that bunch after they started imposing caps,
then reduced them, then said that only registered reads would count.
> Light the torches! Pile up the wood!
> I'll bring the marshmallows.
> Gene-Michael Higney
As a pagan, I'm unable to get behind the once-too-popular idea of
burning people, but I have no difficulty with the idea of letting things
go right up to the point where someone would ordinarily strike a match
to the pile. Maybe it would help them discover that they could, after
all, pay the authors. :)
Ed
> Everyone needs to be sure to save your contributor page as well as
> your articles before you go down. You'll at least be able to claim
Thanks for mentioning that. Fact is, now I'm wondering if we'll even see
any 1099's come January. Might want to hold off mentioning TS income
until you have some way to conclusively prove how much you did and
didn't receive.
Would a printout of your author's page info be enough for the IRS?
Would they allow the deduction?
Also, I didn't receive a 1099 form for 2000 from TS.
No reason to think we'll be receiving them for 2001.
Gary Carson
They did a good job of representing writer's left in the lurch when
Carol Publishing (who was publishing my book) went bankrupt.
We need somebody to represent us as a group in bankruptcy proceedings
-- If one efffected writer is a member of the union, NWU will
negotiate for all writers.
Gary Carson
Gary Carson
http://www.garycarson.com
Robotech_Master
> Also, I didn't receive a 1099 form for 2000 from TS.
> No reason to think we'll be receiving them for 2001.
That's odd. I got my 1099 from them for 2000 with no problems, and
used it in filing my taxes. But yes, I have to wonder about that,
too. If I don't get a 1099, well, I guess I can't include it on my
taxes.
Gene-Michael Higney
Yes, I remember poking my nose in and seeing some impressively high
figures bandied about. Part-time cynic that I am, I remember feeling a
little nervous and worried that "in case something happened" would you
folks get those accrued figures. I guess once in a while even Chicken
Little is right and the sky *does* fall in. But I wasn't trying to
compare your losses against theirs, by any means, just pointing out that
I was afraid others in the group would be experiencing the same state of
left-out-to-dry. I've had this done to me by a magazine, but nowhere
near the amounts that some of the rest of you were stuck for. I just
think that's lousy, period.
> > It's really unfortunate that they didn't do the ethical thing and
make
> > sure their authors' final pay period was covered.
>
> Couldn't expect ethics from that bunch after they started imposing
caps,
> then reduced them, then said that only registered reads would count.
That's when I started being glad that I *hadn't* submitted anything to
them. Kind of like Bea Arthur's character in "MAME" who, when she finds
out the 1929 stock market has crashed, says: "Thank *God* I never put
anything aside!"
> > Light the torches! Pile up the wood!
> > I'll bring the marshmallows.
> > Gene-Michael Higney
>
> As a pagan, I'm unable to get behind the once-too-popular idea of
> burning people, but I have no difficulty with the idea of letting
things
> go right up to the point where someone would ordinarily strike a match
> to the pile. Maybe it would help them discover that they could, after
> all, pay the authors. :)
> Ed & ABINTRA PRESS! http://abintra.virtualave.net/
Well you may be a pagan, Ed, but your anti-person-sauteeing philosophy
is a most charitable and good one. So let's just burn 'em at a
metaphorical stake.
Or maybe adopt the IRS policy of turning them upside down and shaking
them 'til all their pocket change falls to the ground, and snagging
*that*.
I noticed also a very intelligent suggestion by, I believe, Gary,
regarding counting the incident as a business loss on taxes. If that's
possible then at least something can salvaged out of TS's debacle.
Best regards to the group, <and putting away the marshmallows for when
Ed's not looking>,
Gene =^]
Gene-Michael Higney
Gene-Michael Higney
PS: Oops... sorry, that was Chris who made the suggestion about taking
the losses off on taxes. I'm definitely losing my last remaining
braincells.
Forgetfully,
Al Zheimer 8^o
AKA Gene-Michael Higney
Dan Birchall
> Everyone needs to be sure to save your contributor page as well as
> your articles before you go down. You'll at least be able to claim
> the "loss" on your taxes next year.
Unfortunately, I was *not* (regardless of what their lil' FAQ says)
"notified via email on April 11, 2001" and by the time I saw R_M's
post here, April 12th was as good as over, too. Fortunately, I had
copies of most of the stuff, but I don't think I have a copy of my
contributor page. Mebbe I'll check my browser cache. ;)
Ed
> Yes, I remember poking my nose in and seeing some impressively high
> figures bandied about. Part-time cynic that I am, I remember feeling a
> little nervous and worried that "in case something happened" would you
> folks get those accrued figures. I guess once in a while even Chicken
> Little is right and the sky *does* fall in. But I wasn't trying to
> compare your losses against theirs, by any means, just pointing out that
> I was afraid others in the group would be experiencing the same state of
> left-out-to-dry. I've had this done to me by a magazine, but nowhere
> near the amounts that some of the rest of you were stuck for. I just
> think that's lousy, period.
Agreed, but at least I got two checks out of TS before it folded.
Thought for all those yet unpaid TS authors:
Email TS to ask for something in writing that you can show the IRS.
Do it now.
You may not get it, but mentioning the IRS just may shake the money tree
enough to at least generate a deductible statement of earnings.
Dan Birchall
dismay) that I'm not really doing too well as a writer in the area
of getting paid.
In the last decade, I've written "for (some sort of) pay" 1 or 2
short articles on computing subjects, 2 longer articles on computing
subjects, 2 book chapters on computing subjects, a bunch of Epinions,
and some stuff on Themestream.
I got paid for the short articles, the book chapters, and the Epinions,
for a total take thus far of $1200-1300.
I didn't get paid for the long articles (the paper published one as the
front page story of its premiere edition, then folded) or the Themestream
stuff, for a total "bad debt" thus far of $600-800.
So for every $3 people promise to pay me, I'm getting about $2 so far. :)