Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

[fastcart]

Hello all. First, let me state that this thread is not for bashing or hating on gil sellers/buyers. I want this to be a constructive conversation. "Gil sellers ruin the economy," "I think he made some valid points," or "I am not a lawyer, but..." posts are okay. But, "Gil sellers suck! DIE! DIE! DIE!" posts aren't. That being said, these quotes are from the LotRO beta boards. Unfortunately, you can't read them directly without access. But, here's the gist.

Allakhazam Database Now Live

http://beta.lotro.com/showpost.php?p=327885&postcount=1 (Allakhazam's introductory post)

We've been working on a full database for LOTRO for a while now and feel we have enough of it done now to make it live and solicit your feedback. You will notice quite a few additions to our site menu. I call it beta because it is still raw by Allakhazam standards, but we are opening our database with 1,944 items, 1,144 mobs, 353 quests and 478 zones, and that's just the beginning. Our LOTRO team is busy at work every day adding new information and refining what we already have. We are also still adding features to the actual database. Expect things like titles, accomplishments, traits, crafting etc. to be added in the future. We're really excited about what we are creating for this excellent game.

http://lotro.allakhazam.com

http://beta.lotro.com/showpost.php?p...2&postcount=14 (Allakhazam's response to being owned by IGE)

We aren't owned by IGE and have nothing to do with gold farming. Anyone who uses our site knows that we never have run any gold selling ads, and instantly ban from our forums all posts about selling items and gold. Check any of the other sites and see how many of them don't run RMT ads. But believe what you want. The only connection we have with IGE is though mutual ownership by a large media corporation that keeps us completely separate.

Those who want to use our site for the information we provide, you are welcome. As the largest and most extensive MMORPG site on the internet, we put pride into everything we do. Those who want to believe the conspiracy theorists, by all means take your tin foil hats and go elsewhere.

http://beta.lotro.com/showpost.php?p...2&postcount=15 (A beta member's response)

You've had a good long time to refine your talking points regarding this. Parse much? IGE and Allakhazam are owned by the same parent company, which was formed by IGE itself.

I encourage people who want to make up their own minds without being called "conspiracy theorists" to just google allakhazam and IGE and read some of the articles out there.

This one, for example:

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3150282

http://beta.lotro.com/showpost.php?p...3&postcount=19 (Allakhazam's response to the beta member)

Google away. You know how the internet works. One person posts something and then everyone else picks it up as a fact. Since I created the site and still run it, I think I know who owns it and how it is run. But I'm tired of arguing with people like you. By all means keep far away from our site. Frankly, I don't want your traffic. Somehow the 10 million people who use our site every moth don't mind using our services. Those who appreciate all the work we put into it will continue to use us and support us and get the benefit of all the information we provide for the gaming public.

A few posts later, a moderator closed the thread http://beta.lotro.com/showpost.php?p...4&postcount=26

This forum is not the place for discussing the RMT policies of external websites. Please take this discussion elsewhere.

This is my first time hearing a rebuttal directly from Allakhazam regarding IGE's ownership. Thoughts?

[Murphie]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

I think he was being a bit of a dick. But it's his site, so that's his right, I guess. If anything, his responses have convinced me that I'm entirely right in no longer supporting his site, and in fact telling everyone I know with any common sense to avoid it.

[KamuroIshigami]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

No offense to the moderators and admins whom are simply minions of Allakhazam, it is the top leader whom sold out. And depending on whether Allakhazam or IGE was acquired first, s/he may not have known that they were going to obtain IGE.

Well, the problem some people do not realize is no matter the amount of hounding they do to Allakhazam will do no good. As the CHILD company, you cannot disown the parent company when the parent company owns 100% of you. And worst, they can't do jack about a sister/brother company as the child company has no say in the policies or planning of what the parent company wants.

The Allakhazam people should abstain from going to Allakhazam, then start hounding the PARENT company to either:
A.) Disown Allakhazam
B.) Disown IGE
C.) Provide some system and form of assurance that IGE will be seperate from Allakhazam in everything except ownership.

Though honestly, on the principle of things, the parent company owning both would be like being the leader of Israel and Iran at the same time. Just doesn't work that way. (Or being the leader of the Axis AND the Allies at the same time.)

[Macht]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

Sounds like the Allakhazam is being effected from people hearing that they have a relation to IGE. The guy mentions 10 million people going to the site but that can not possibly be just traffic for FFXI.

It seems to me they tried to mask the issue by either giving a fake number or only a sum of people coming to the site and choose to omit were on the site they go to, since Allakhazam also has EQ, EQ2, DAoC, L2, EQOA, LOTR, MMOI, SWG, and WoW.

For having such a long list of MMOs 10 million seems unrealistic. I know for a fact that EQ players use Allakhazam frequently, it's almost like there bible for the game. An of course EQ has a different view on gil sellers, they see it as an oddity for someone not to want gil sellers.

Then again I should add one of them I know is a friend of mine. She has thrown around $100k to gilsellers for her EQ character. Boy did I get a mean look from her when I made the comment, of how stupid I thought it was for people to be supporting the idea of spending real money to get game money quickly.

[Tirrock]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

Between somepage, mysterytour, and the ffxi wiki, I haven't needed alla for quite some time now. I just made a habit of not even thinking about going there when the whole ZAM thing came out.

[fastcart]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

Macht, I'm sure he meant the total sum. This was on the LotRO (Lord of the Rings Online) forums, not an FFXI one.

I think AKosygin makes an excellent point though. But, if my understanding is correct, IGE actually made the parent company themselves even if they are legally separate. So, hounding them to disown IGE would fall on deaf ears. Them disowning Allakhazam would seem more likely, but just barely. Still, great point.

[Jei]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

Google away. You know how the internet works. One person posts something and then everyone else picks it up as a fact. Since I created the site and still run it, I think I know who owns it and how it is run.

Yet, he never says who the owner actually is. *blink blink*
Not that it really matters for me... just found that reply really weird.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

There's only so much useful information that Allakazham even has anymore. FFXI players have FFXI Wiki, Koolaid.org and all other manner of sites to turn to now that don't have RMT affiliations.

The owner of Allakazham can say whatever he wants, they're owned by IGE. There are countless player across many MMOs that have done the digging to realize this. IGE aside, I'm still amazed people pay for "premier" features.

[Feba]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

By Allakhazam, you mean Jeff Moyer (the owner and founder of the site), and not a company shield right?

In all my experience with him, he's been an asshole, and very unprofessional too. (such as talking about the personal details on the credit card I used after I canceled, making blatently untrue comments to make me look like an attention whore)

I don't hold anything against allakhazam as a site though. It was honestly all Jeff, a lot of the other employees on the site didn't hear about it until a few hours before the general announcement was made. I'm still fairly good friends with one of their admins, and I talk to him on an almost daily basis, and I don't mind talking to other ones, though I don't know how to contact them.

[Neomage]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

No offense to the moderators and admins whom are simply minions of Allakhazam, it is the top leader whom sold out. And depending on whether Allakhazam or IGE was acquired first, s/he may not have known that they were going to obtain IGE.

Well, the problem some people do not realize is no matter the amount of hounding they do to Allakhazam will do no good. As the CHILD company, you cannot disown the parent company when the parent company owns 100% of you. And worst, they can't do jack about a sister/brother company as the child company has no say in the policies or planning of what the parent company wants.

The Allakhazam people should abstain from going to Allakhazam, then start hounding the PARENT company to either:
A.) Disown Allakhazam
B.) Disown IGE
C.) Provide some system and form of assurance that IGE will be seperate from Allakhazam in everything except ownership.

Though honestly, on the principle of things, the parent company owning both would be like being the leader of Israel and Iran at the same time. Just doesn't work that way. (Or being the leader of the Axis AND the Allies at the same time.)

RPG Holdings never aquired IGE, RPG holdings is IGE. At least the CEO of IGE created RPG Holdings then bought his own company. Jeff knew for a long time what he was doing when he sold Allakhazam to IGE, and he knew what the reaction would be. He actually finished the sale about 2 years prior to accouncing it to his staff. And I agree with Feba, from what I've seen he is a major asshole(pardon my language).

EDIT: And to clarify the parent/child company status, the CEO of IGE was CEO long before he created RPG Holdings and "bought" his own company. RPG Holdings is simply a disguise or shield, because saying "Well, we've been bought my RPG Holdings, a company that just happens to own IGE" seems more... I duno, less venomus then "Sorry guys, I sold us out to IGE for money" even though it is exactly the same thing.

[Feba]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

2 years? Earliest I heard was November, which was about six months.

[Theyaden]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

There's only so much useful information that Allakazham even has anymore. FFXI players have FFXI Wiki, Koolaid.org and all other manner of sites to turn to now that don't have RMT affiliations.

The owner of Allakazham can say whatever he wants, they're owned by IGE. There are countless player across many MMOs that have done the digging to realize this. IGE aside, I'm still amazed people pay for "premier" features.

As a personal choice once I found out alla had been aquired into the IGE fold I stopped going there. Before that it was my one stop shop for gaming information on FFXI (quests, crafting, keeping up with general ideas within a comunity) from my start in the game. It took a little getting used to going through other sites, a new forum, and getting less flames in my post read diet.
In short I don't use it anymore my personal sense of integrity was worth more to me than staying with what I was familiar with. Just my 2 gil /goodbye allakhazam.

[fastcart]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

Guys, can we do without the name calling? Thanks.

[Murphie]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

If you can think of a more fitting adjective for his response, I'll be happy to edit my initial post.

But I think I was pretty spot-on.

[KamuroIshigami]

Re: Response from Allakhazam regarding IGE ownership

RPG Holdings never aquired IGE, RPG holdings is IGE. At least the CEO of IGE created RPG Holdings then bought his own company. Jeff knew for a long time what he was doing when he sold Allakhazam to IGE, and he knew what the reaction would be. He actually finished the sale about 2 years prior to accouncing it to his staff. And I agree with Feba, from what I've seen he is a major asshole(pardon my language).

EDIT: And to clarify the parent/child company status, the CEO of IGE was CEO long before he created RPG Holdings and "bought" his own company. RPG Holdings is simply a disguise or shield, because saying "Well, we've been bought my RPG Holdings, a company that just happens to own IGE" seems more... I duno, less venomus then "Sorry guys, I sold us out to IGE for money" even though it is exactly the same thing.

Either way, hounding at Allak staff isn't going to do jack, unless you hound up to the people that can do something. However, houding the Allak staff to give you their superior's contact so you can hound them until you get to someone that can do something, is valid.