Photobucket.com problems...BIG time!

[hgger69]

Hi,
After more then 11 years as a happy user I, and a huge amount of internet users, today discovered that photobucket.com decided to take action against 3rd party hosting usage as they call it. 

This makes all my threads in different forums, including this one.,..... round the world, worthless cause all the pics are gone... 

Photobucket.com demands a fee of $399 a year to let the pics be used in forums, homepages and similar.
How can we act to make photobucket reasonable again, suggests?
Otherwise this act is going to kill a lot of good and reliable forums connected to our hobby... 

[cook_dw]

How can we act to make photobucket reasonable again, suggests?

Hit'em where it hurts.  Stop using them.  I did over a year ago.

[hgger69]

How can we act to make photobucket reasonable again, suggests?

Hit'em where it hurts.  Stop using them.  I did over a year ago.

That's easier said then done, I´m afraid! 
I've got threads that I started years ago and they still are active and to start to edit the pics, if its even possible, it´s not an option! 

[jeff68]

I have a lot of PB photos in my posts as well.

What's a good alternative?

[68camaroz28]

I was OK I thought but received this yesterday from them.
"Are you worried about your account? Don't be. All of our Plus Members are grandfathered in for 3rd Party Hosting until the end of your current subscription. However, if you want to beat the crowds and upgrade to the Plus 500 now, we'll give you six months on us!"
At $400 a year I don't think so!
I've got a ton of pics that will be coming off when this grandfather loses his grandfathered 3r part hosting when my Plus member renewal hits.

[69Z28-RS]

"Most of us" ..  realized when we were told we were going to get 'something' for FREE...  that there either was a catch, OR would be a catch in the future...   

or as Uncle Remus would say:  "There ain't no free rides in this life"   

(of course that was before the Demos became stoned!)...

[Hans L]

I just got the email yesterday from Photobucket saying my account (Plus20) will not longer be offered and I'll need to upgrade to another plan within 30 days.

However, it appears only the $400/yr plan will continue to permit 3rd party hosting (the ability to copy the link from PB and have the image presented on sites like here vs a link sending the user back to Photobucket). 

Has anybody found a more competitive offering??

Thanks,

Hans

[hgger69]

I just got the email yesterday from Photobucket saying my account (Plus20) will not longer be offered and I'll need to upgrade to another plan within 30 days.

However, it appears only the $400/yr plan will continue to permit 3rd party hosting (the ability to copy the link from PB and have the image presented on sites like here vs a link sending the user back to Photobucket). 

Has anybody found a more competitive offering??

Thanks,

Hans

I´ve just started to use Fotki.com as my host for my pics and I'm very pleased so far!
They only charge $24/year for hosting 100 GB, I think that's accurate!

fotki.com

Photobucket are lost in space and hopefully they will change their policy otherwise they don't exist before the end of this year....

[Hans L]

Thanks hggr69!   I'll check them out.  Yeah, I agree - if Photobucket doesn't change their policy on 3rd policy hosting, they will become a niche player at best. 

[Hans L]

Good news - I sent Photobucket an email stating my disappointment with their new policy regarding 3rd party hosting and the new exorbitant fees - here's their response:
   
Moss (Photobucket Support)
Nov 9, 3:00 PM MST

Hello Hans,

Thank you for reaching out to us about this. In regards to the email you received, we have decided to make an exception for your account. You will be able to stay on your current Plus 20 subscription and will not need to upgrade your account at this time.

As stated in our current Terms of Use, you will continue to be grandfathered into 3rd Party Hosting capabilities until the end of December 2018 or when your subscription ends in 2019, whichever comes last.

We apologize for the confusion and any inconvenience this may have caused. Please let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns regarding this.

Sincerely,

and the email I sent:

Sebastian -

This is extremely disappointing news as it appears in order to retain "3rd Party Hosting" feature, my annual fees will increase from $35/yr to $399 - that's insane!!   I barely use 20GB of storage and I use "3rd Party Hosting" for less than 50 images per year on hobbyist forums (like www.camaros.org).   I do not use it for any commercial or revenue generating purposes at all.

What options do I have?  Can Photobucket create a new plan that limits the number of images that can be classified as "3rd Party Hosting"?

If not, I'll need to seek a more affordable, competitive alternative.   Again, this is very disappointing and this feels like extortion by Photobucket.

Please advise what options other than the Plus 500 you can offer.

Thanks,

Hans Littooy
San Diego, CA