Transparency On The Future of ATS

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Coming from someone who has some experience putting ROI analysis and business cases/proformas together, the one thing I can say is that anyone serious about running this website long term likely understands the pathway to assuming said ownership lies through direct 1 to 1 discussion insomuch as public pleas.

Ill tell you, one thing ill never be is rich. Or even close. So im out. Although im always happy to lend my time and effort to any endeavor worthy of such, like anyone else im not the one in position to make that investment. Or I would have emailed the ownership directly and began the process of due diligence.

originally posted by: SkepticOverlord
Important Post Below

But please respect and appreciate the following: the lives of myself, Springer and Simon have changed such that our commitments preclude us from returning to focus on ATS. I've stated this over and over. Please respect it.


Important Post Above

I can respect that.
Was not sure if you guys wanted it to last or end.
Have considered it ATS may be a project that is supposed to end eventually also.
However things turnout I appreciate the secret learnings and experience and wish you all good luck 💪

originally posted by: Wookiep
a reply to: Liquesence

The owners are just saying " we have no interest in ATS anymore, so unless someone buys us out, which we will make sure it's extremely difficult. Then ATS will go dark. So ATS WILL go dark. Have fun!"

There's definitely a conspiracy in this, it's pretty stupid actually lol. No efforts to buy ATS are going to work. The wording of it all is proof. But kudos to those who want to hold on to hope in the matter.

If anyone can send me a PM to an alternate "replacement site" that would be much appreciated!

I have known the owners of this website for around 13 years. NEVER in my entire time here has SO, Simon, OR Springer ever let up on trying to make this baby of their's successful. The mere suggestion that they "have no interest in ATS anymore" is patently false. I personally know of many nights that SO would stay up ALL NIGHT, coding away on the database, just to make sure that there was a site for everyone to come back to the next day. Springer would travel a LOT to network with people to help leverage support and bring new talent to this little hovel we call home. And SImon, the mysterious one that's spoken of, has been helping to keep things going on his end too.

I find it very disengenuous to claim that the owners no longer care about this place. If they didn't, they'd just let it die. The fact that SO took the time to write the post he did should tell you that he's dedicated to seeing this handled properly. It is my hope that this quoted post (and many others in this thread like it), are just all coming from a place of frustration, because we're all there. What I DO NOT want is to have people looking negatively at the VERY PEOPLE that have made this place for you to post! If nothing else, please extend a thank you to them for their efforts! They have all worked VERY HARD to make it what it is.

Now, as for me... I wanted to take a moment to publicly say to The Three Amigos; If this goes away, I'm going to be very sad. I'm going to miss you all so much. This place has been a home to me and MANY others for so very long. But I understand that this is one of many evolutions that we must go through. It's just a shame that change has to happen like this. I find myself looking back now at what brought me here, and where I went from there. This place changed me so much. So really, what I'm trying to say is, THANK YOU for the opportunity to be able to have a place to discuss things that I couldn't discuss pretty much anywhere else!!! Denying Ignorance has become a lifestyle for me, which I owe to being here. Thank you so much for that!

Damn, if this goes away, I'm really gonna miss you all! :-(

TheBorg :-)

originally posted by: Ahabstar
a reply to: MonkeyFishFrog

If you recall... Google bought YouTube years ago.

Yeah and we've been hearing about it for years from content creators on both sides of the political spectrum but everyone was pretty much proactive with getting on the Patreon and paid membership train. ATS didn't. Simply put

originally posted by: SkepticOverlord

originally posted by: CIAGypsy
As a cybersecurity expert, there are all kinds of problems with ads which is why most cyber and IT personnel will tell people to block them.

Reputable ad networks, such as the one we use, regularly scan for such ads, and never allows "self-serve" ad campaign by advertisers. 99.9% of the types of malware you refer to come from ad networks that allow anyone with a credit card or bitcoin to run ads.

Not true if browsing the site from the phone, Ive had to shut down the browser many a time due to malicious ad content here. Hopefully no longer the case, and I havent had problems with a normal browser.

Also working in IT, Ive even seen recent google ads compromised, no business worth anything is going to allow ads at work. They are quick to fix it, but it does certainly happen.

originally posted by: DictionaryOfExcuses
a reply to: The GUT

FWIW, a few years back I posted a short story. I had never written stories before registering my account here. You sent me a very encouraging u2u. I saved it and printed it out. It made an enormous positive impact on my confidence. I'd say that it changed my life. "Always trust your gut," they say. So thanks for that.

Thanks for sharing that. That you did means a lot too. Also reminds me of encouragement I've got from the ATS family as well.

I was pretty sure I remembered which short story and I just went back and read it again. It remains a well-crafted killer read---in more ways than one and I'm hard to win over on short stories.

Get it before it's gone y'all:

Let's Get Out Of Here, Baby

Take care, DoE and keep on keeping' on!

a reply to: 111DPKING111

Never once have i had a malicious ad injected on any device ive ever used on ATS. This is the only website I visit from my work computer, besides facebook (sometimes work related, sometimes not).

Never once. 13 years +. Not one single time in over 50k posts and God knows how many page views.

a reply to: SkepticOverlord

Well this sucks.

Ive been here since '08, apparently the year things started to suck.

My bad.

How about getting Robert Bigelow to buy ATS?


Im sure someone knows a guy who knows the guy..

a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

BFFT, maybe it is just me but I read through the thread and I see the reactions and some still hold the anger of what I will guess of feeling betrayal that something they loved and really changed their own selves to become a better fit with what bits of Civility and Decorum that still remained...is at a point of either an ending or having new beginning.

The idea that ATS could come through the other side of this nexus stronger, better and more secure in itself than ever before. Maybe I have the benefit of hindsight because I have seen all of this before. In 1989 I was in Knoxville being shown the internet and having conversations between various colleges. Telneting to various MUX's and MUD's and MOO's in the early 1990's. Worlds of text on object describing the world around them. And it was all hand typed by the most dedicated nerds on the planet. I still know details of the Battlestar Galactica universe that was never touched upon in even the reboot with the female Starbuck. And believe me, you HAD to learn a 100+ page manual and pass a test to play with them.

Almost all of it replaced by webpages, just as Telnet replaced the dial up BBS. As BBS replaced typing in mounds of code from a magazine to play a new game...unless friends made you a cassette copy once they finished their in exchange for a copy of yours.

Not saying that forums and free expression commentary are antiquated...just that the old standard business model of funding them are. Coffee shops and Taverns always have a place in society. And that is what forums replicate. But the fundamental rule of running a business is to be in charge of raising your own capital. Giving your product for free to a middleman selling advertising in the hopes that they are fair is quite the gamble. Now if those ads are a side hustle and immaterial to your business model you can drop the big guy like a bad habit versus being humble before them.

DB's thread about not kneeling comes to mind...but some think that had a different meaning.

originally posted by: SkepticOverlord

originally posted by: Riffrafter
Barring a sale, do you have a date in mind when you'd turn out the lights?

When I originally posted this thread, my hope was 3-4 months of longevity. Given the sudden decline in traffic from the Google unlisting of more than 1 million of our pages, it might be sooner. I can't give an informed answer until I see the actual impact on revenue.

If you use duckduckgo.com(I really wish they would have come up with a better name) for web searches, you immediately see the censorship. Maybe good intentions with the George Floyd crime, but I would suggest everyone should spread the word to switch search engines.

Mercola wrote a recent article about Youtube banning all their videos

Another article on alternative health censorship. If you do a search for covid prevention, its really apparent.

Seeing as any successful "taking over of the torch" could take time that we/you don't currently have... what are the prospects of at least acquiring a backup of the database and all content stored within (preferably a backup made just before/after shutting the lights off)? So that at some point in the future, even if it takes a year or so, all the content can be salvaged and restored onto a new ATS?

If nothing else -- I myself am a web-developer/coder and would happily invest much of my time (I'm sure with the help of others' donated technical expertise) in eventually putting a framework together for a new/improved ATS that would allow for membership subscriptions to those willing/able, and ad revenue (for whatever it's worth) to those unable.

The important thing is securing the decades of priceless content.

a reply to: SkepticOverlord

Just want to say thank you to all who have made this site possible for so many years. It has been home to so many of us.

I can only hope that the site can somehow be saved. Love and light in your new journey wherever that may take you all.

a reply to: Ahabstar

I've spent some time talking with people I know and consider to be the smartest people in my realm. How to monetize ATS is something that, without a massive media support structure, is not within the knowledgbase of any of them. Of course, we are talking about dinosaurs, relatively speaking, that are as comfortable doing their business with excel as anything else. So there's that.

But i cannot fathom how this site could be monetized. The only 2 ways I can envision are another 3rd party ad service that isn't within Googles control. That is a years long endeavor to create...i don't think it'll help here. The other is to be absorbed into the fold of a larger corporate entity that already infrastructure in place to deploy for more enriched content like video, etc. I think that in a world with UFO and cryptids, a vine/tiktok ability would be a prong of attack at gaining audience among a newer audience. Problem is...infrastructure. We know video's can be monetized, though...and if they are moderated well enough to prevent the ire of Google's ad service (i.e., no political rants, as they lead to verbiage that Google seems to not like) then it could be part of a plan. For example.

If only ATS had a cheap plug and play solution to pull from the shelf to allow for that. Again...there is a development time.

I hope to see ATS survive. If it does not, several members can expect me to reach out to them over the next few weeks to establish a more long term contact.

a reply to: The GUT

I too owe a huge thank you to ATS and the family it has become.

As you know, ATS was there in its finest form when my wife suffered a tragic brain injury.

I am convinced that the many prayers and wishes sent our way from around the world, contributed greatly to her wondrous recovery.
For those who care to see the thread, it was hosted by the generous Night Star, who incedently still provides a safe haven for all in " The Shed ".

This type of community is not something you can google and just be a part of ... it is not just political crap.

Again I say a loud and heartfelt THANKYOU to all who make ATS
a very special place .

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
a reply to: 111DPKING111

Never once have i had a malicious ad injected on any device ive ever used on ATS. This is the only website I visit from my work computer, besides facebook (sometimes work related, sometimes not).

Never once. 13 years +. Not one single time in over 50k posts and God knows how many page views.

I’ve had malware hit my ph while on ATS where I’ve had to shut down ph, clear data and restart. It’s happened many of times on ph, never on computer.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

You can't name the forum?

Damn. ATS was woke before it became a term. It's not what it used to be but it survived.

Truth of the matter, there are no sites out there on the open net that fills the void of what ATS has.

Is it possible to get our hands on the archive database? some of us can keep a copy of the site as was? There is still a ton on this site...

a reply to: 111DPKING111

Just an example to illustrate the DuckDuckGo vs Google search results:

Screenshot of Google search result:



Screenshot of DuckDuckGo search result:

Your site is outdated.

I’ve been here 10+ years, and I must admit that its easy to see that this site is run by elderly American Men.

New reply system would be good. Ypu do realize that ypur reply system kills all your threads? Its waaay to hard to follow a conversation in an on going thread. Meaning that people will only read the OP/first page.

Also how expensive is it really to host this site? I mean, i understand image boards like 4chan is expensive because of the pictures, but here we only post text.

a reply to: SkepticOverlord


I know i've locked horns before over the past 10 years" but I still come back to ATS for the real news. Your endeavours and investigations are appreciated.

I mentioned when ads were on the table to help fund the traffic flow, but speaking for myself, I hated the ads option in lieu of paying membership and before the s**** hit the fan in my life 6 yrs ago, i had the cash to do so.....

But no one saw a pandemic coming way back then.

Personally, it comes down to an individual choice to spend our finances where it will benefit our lives the most; one of those benefits we as human beings fail to put on the budget next to Disney+ is, the freedom of information and truth in America and abroad; because I think we've subconsciously have taken it for granted and we don't see how Foi & getting to the bottom of the truth deeply enhances our lives 1000% more than 1.5 hours of Disney+. (Just using D+ as an example for comparison) my 2cents

But on the other hand, ATS content isn't being taken serious, because ATS content is being produced as serious (conspiracy chicks? Really?)

ATS YT channel only has 1.2k subs and 161 videos.......? Maybe it's time to recapture what ATS was really about......ABOVE TOP SECRET and leave the rest to someone else or keep it separate from ATS.

Trust me, and I've heard enough members say "this what I came to top secret for!"as they read/view a possible UFO sighting or a subject that has been in CT for decades.

That's why I came here SO.

Because those of us who've had so deep experiences WANT to know the truth behind what we experienced!! NOT ANY OTHER SUBJECT...

just the ones that are ABOVE TOP SECRET!

The experience s that some of us have had ARE real and if the truth be exposed.....ALL our differences with each other will come to a dead stop because we'll realize we may not be alone and there is ONLY 1 human species.

Take what you started and take it serious or give it to someone who can and $$$$ won't be an issue to support it.


It is my hope you find your answers