I have used the wanted ad's with phenomenal success and would like to see them back. I would not mind paying a small fee for them as they have saved me hundreds upon hundreds of dollars in the long run. As Bob had mentioned, i have also received and forwarded "tips". The ones that i received came from kindly parties that had nothing to gain in regards to items that i was looking for. This helped to re-affirm my faith in the "Audiogon Family" and prove that there are many helpful souls amongst the group that frequents this site.
I can see how Audiogon could consider this a "losing" situation for themselves though. They tie up more bandwidth on their server and site, add greater potential for "disputes" that they would have to get involved in, open the door for scam artists ( i'm not explaining how as it might only give unscrupulous individuals more insight and ideas ) and may even pull revenue away from A-gon. All this for free with them footing the time and expense to keep it all running smoothly. Since the seller might have potentially posted a "for sale" ad sometime in the future and ends up responding to an ad that was placed for free, Audiogon was in effect chasing its' own tail.
Sugar even mentions the fact that dealers were taking advantage of the wanted ads. Dealers that would normally have to pay for advertisement or ads. In effect, Audiogon was helping them to sell products with Audiogon making no return on their investment. I am not getting down on Sugar or the various dealers that have done so in the least, as i've run into the same situation and ended up walking away smelling like roses. It was a win / win situation for all involved. All, that is, except for Audiogon.
Those complaining about the wanted ads being taken away and possibly having to pay for them, remember this: Audiogon IS a business, offers 24 hour availability, has to pay employees, is responsible for equipment upgrades and maintenance, etc... In other words, if they don't make enough money to make it worth their while to continue operation, you won't have ANY site like this to visit. The same goes for Audio Asylum.
If you like these sites and make use of them on a regular basis, do your part to support them. This will only help all of us in the long run and guarantee that they'll be around in the future. Both of these sites offer great amounts of information and service. This is especially true given the amount of information / services that one gains considering their very limited investment. Sean
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