Breaking even for independent wikis

[KidIcarus]

I'm just curious, of the NIWA wikis who pay for their own hosting/domain names, how many are able to break even financially after ads and/or donations? I would think at least some of the bigger ones - Super Mario Wiki, Bulbapedia, Strategy Wiki - are able to do so.

[Axiomist]

I think Zelda Wiki does too. But we'll never see confirmation on that. WiKirby almost did, :p If we didn't need a much more powerful server, we would be above the breaking even point. But that was while on a $4 per month plan and now we have a $40 per month plan. I expect by the time we break even for a month, it still won't have covered the previous losses, and the demands on the site will require yet another server upgrade. :S

[KidIcarus]

I think Zelda Wiki does too. But we'll never see confirmation on that.

Why do you say we'll never see confirmation on that?

[TurtwigA]

I've heard Bulbapedia does, and Bulbagarden puts that surplus into competitions for the community to partake in.

[tacopill]

I think Zelda Wiki does too. But we'll never see confirmation on that.

Why do you say we'll never see confirmation on that?

A wiki should be about content, not finances. So, a wiki may choose not to reveal it's finances, budget, etc.

[Axiomist]

I think Zelda Wiki does too. But we'll never see confirmation on that.

Why do you say we'll never see confirmation on that?

The owner just doesn't discuss anything like that too much. Ultimately, it is his decision and he can decide whether or not he wants to reveal the wiki's financial situation. I don't completely blame him. If the wiki doesn't generate more than it costs, people could criticize it for not being cost effective enough, and if it generates more than it costs, people could criticize it for having too many ad impressions in the pages.

And that owner isn't really involved in NIWA's discussion posts much or trying to encourage other wikis to start-up/go independent;. This is the only reason I openly discuss these matters as far as WiKirby goes. I want others to have a good idea of what to expect if they were going to bring a wiki into NIWA.

[Peanut64]

Pikmin and Pikmin fanon are hosted by Mariowiki, and therefore, with no advertisements. I like having no ads because I keeps us focused.

[Tucayo]

Pikmin and Pikmin fanon are hosted by Mariowiki, and therefore, with no advertisements. I like having no ads because I keeps us focused.

Does it work the same as the MW? With ads just showing up for guests?

[Greenpickle]

Not AFAIK.  Of course, I expect the Pikmin wikis get comparatively so few viewers there's just no point in running adverts.

[Koroku]

For what it counts, Wikimon has yet to even come close to breaking even. :\ I'm probably a good grand poorer thanks to it. I've gotten a few donations here and there, but they don't match the $50-$100 (Depending on the month and the server we were on) bill that comes along with it.

[Xizor]

I'm pretty sure ZW breaks even/turns a profit. I think its profits are used to help maintain the Zelda Universe server, which hosts both Zelda Universe and Zelda Wiki. I'm not intimate with ZU's finances, though.

[Garrett]

Any wiki with advertising should be breaking even at the bare minimum (unless they are doing something wrong) and will most likely be making a modest profit; as hardware demands increase the higher viewer numbers will inevitably provide the advertising dollars to pay for it.

A wiki that relies on donations will only be as stable as its user base is generous, however, and as the wiki grows in popularity the level of generosity required to cover day-to-day operation (let alone funding upgrades) will increase dramatically.

Even though profitability shouldn't be the primary goal, ending up with a profit after covering the day-to-day running costs is very advantageous as it opens up all sorts of possibilities; saving for a future server upgrade is a common choice here. In the case of StrategyWiki it has helped to fund the new skin as well as the "Bounties" gift voucher experiment.