IGN Buys Gamer Network Sites, Layoffs In Progress

@simonthekid7: I agree with you in every way above.

Growing up, I had subscriptions to gameinformer, and PS mag (the one with demo dics) for several years. When downloading MP3s from bearshare, I had no problem reading magazines, which of course had ads, that you could not skip. But that is a generation that is not moving the gaming industry today. Millenials and gen z move the needle way more then even gamers, that may spend larger amounts of money then young gamers. Because they are the future of the industry, not the past.

BUT, I would like to argue that it is NOT completely the readers, or consumers that are to blame. Wait now.... give me a sec.

With the internet, and those who have only known broadband internet, and devices that feed it to you night and day. They were often given very few if any ads, especially ads that you could not skip. And when they were given ads, a competitor would offer a platform without ads. And when ads became interactive, another platform would arise ... without ads. And when blockers came, few if any browsers fought back. Even with mobile, those the 'knew how' block, letting those that did not look at them. This has been happening since the VCR, tivo, cable box that can skip, streaming, music apps, and more.

This huge industry has grown and grown atmospherically with investment, that one day, these corporations will make money, stopping many sites from offering ads. You have now a couple of generations, that simply know you can skip ads or pay to never see them, or with just a small bit of work... prevent them from ever being seen. DO YOU BLAME these consumers, who have been groomed by the very industry that are now trying to get them to pay for content, while (like you said perfectly) have many many other platforms of gaming news (dumb yt news) that they can find on the internet. Often times without ads, or easily available ways to block those ads.

So a repeated cycle of gaming news sites, they add ads, they are destroyed by new web sites without ads, then those add ads, they are destroyed.... you get the point. And on and on and on. And you are right, consumer should allow ads, or at least pay a little something for their news consumption. But if you buy a subscription on IGN, you are inundated with 3rd party bad actors, because IGN sold their whale list to them.

Another problem... the ads are no longer just ads, they are often malicious spams ads, downright flagrant hocking of crap products, and pop ups to websites that no one should visit. Because those are the ones buying ad space in this industry. Not like Lexus is buying car ads on GameSpot instead of CNN.

Look these are billions, trillions dollar industries that are selling games and ads to kids and adults. Should they not have figured it out, instead of all the fault lying with the consumer. Some fault, sure, all of it? But instead of figuring it out, these corporations are cut throating each other... which is not a bad thing for us consumers.

I do not blame young gamers from choosing stupid social media news, that is what they have been groomed upon, from an industry with zero standards. Solicitousness has always sold more then accuracy, but we live in a world that hocks 'as seen on tv' products on cable, extendz, reverse mortages, the general car insurance, a degree at UTI.. lol. The breaking down of FCC industry standards, has created content that is more garbage then accurate. We can teach our kids how to think critically, giving them defense, but what about the billions of others.? That is the target audience now.

I am not saying your wrong, just saying, I do not think that the collapse of news sites is the consumers fault alone. Most of it is Eddie McKunts mom hocking her sex sites here on Gamespot.