viciouswishes

Apologies for butting in, but I had to say something; I pretty much agree with everything you say, however, I am slightly bemused about your implied belief that the only reason people would have problems with LJ/SUPs decision is because they think LJ is going after fandom. I have no problem in regards to LJ/SUP's objective of wanting to create a business model that can generate more revenue and profit for their organisation. My issue is with the way they went about deleting the Basics Account without an announcement to their customers, the removal of terms in the interests statistics which can be construed as lying about customer base, which is what they need to get the ads onto their site, and then of course there is the brilliant interview with the SUP's director of blog division, who seem to have only contempt for LJ's customers.

There is a thing called corporate governance and social responsibility, and while clarifying their TOS in regards to pornography is a good move to avoid future conflicts, removal of certain features and purposely lying about their client base is not ethical , and the latter can be considered to be illegal in certain countries. This is a case of the means justifying the ends, which is not on, generating profit should be the highest goal in a business, however, ethical business practice should be adhered to at all times.

In conclusion, I do agree with all the moves that LJ/SUPs have done, what I am in disagreement is the way it was accomplished.