Classmates.com
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Typical Classmates.com Member Homepage |
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| URL | http://classmates.com |
|---|---|
| Commercial? | mixed |
| Type of site | social network |
| Owner | United Online, Inc., Nasdaq UNTD |
| Created by | Randy Conrads |
Classmates.com is a social networking website created in 1995[1] by Randy Conrads who founded Classmates Online, Inc[2]. The website helps members find, connect and keep-in-touch with friends and acquaintances from throughout their lives – including kindergarten, primary school, high school, college, work and the United States military. Classmates.com has more than 40 million[3] active members in the United States and Canada, and an Alexa Internet traffic ranking of 499[4].
It is free for people to register as a Basic member of Classmates.com, for them to list themselves to be found, search the entire database for friends. Members may also post photographs, announcements, biographies, read community message boards and be informed of upcoming reunions. Gold members, who pay a fee, can also initiate sending email to any member, use website tools for planning reunions and events, and form private groups and use My Network to communicate with friends.
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[edit] Privacy
Classmates.com members use real names, not screen names. Member privacy is protected through a double-blind email system, so email addresses and contact information are never revealed unless self-disclosed by members one-on-one.
[edit] Ownership
Classmates International, Inc., a subsidiary of Classmates Online, owns and operates StayFriends.de, the number one website in Germany for reconnecting with school friends[5]. It also owns and operates StayFriends.se, the largest site in Sweden for reconnecting with school friends[6].
United Online, Inc. acquired Classmates Online in 2004[7] and continues to own and operate the company as a wholly owned subsidiary. The north-American based Classmates.com is similar to British website Friends Reunited.
[edit] Business model
The company’s business model is based on user generated content and revenue from paid subscriptions and advertising sales. Classmates Online has been profitable since 2001[7] and according to the Online Publishers Association Paid Content U.S. Market Spending Report, Classmates.com was Number 4 among the Top 25 Web Destinations Ranked by Consumer Content Revenue in both 2002 and 2003[8] (the last year's individual site rankings were broken out).
[edit] Controversial business practices
Several of Classmates.com's business practices are controversial. It is standard practice for Classmates.com to auto-renew memberships at the end of each billing period. When PC World magazine field tested several companies to determine how easy or difficult it was to cancel their service, Classmates.com was one of the companies that received their worst rating -- Big Hassle. They also determined that commercial emails persisted after the account was canceled.[9][10]
[edit] References
- ^ CBS News, August 30, 2003. In Search of the Past.
- ^ Classmates, 2006. About Classmates Online, Inc.
- ^ The View, February 1, 2006. Take a Second Chance with that First Love.
- ^ Alexa Internet, April 10, 2006. Alexa Traffic Ranking for Classmates.com.
- ^ Hamburg News, April 10, 2006. Klassentreffen: Auf Zeitreise mit alten Schulfreunden!. (German)
- ^ StayFriends.se, 2006. Press Coverage and Membership Counter. (Swedish)
- ^ a b Seattle Times, October 26, 2004. No. 2 Internet service provider buying Classmates Online.
- ^ Online Publishers Association, May 2004. Paid Content U.S. Market Spending Report (PDF file).
- ^ PC World Magazine, December 22, 2006. Just Cancel the @#%$* Account! Big Hassles
- ^ PC World Magazine, December 22, 2006. Just Cancel the @#%$* Account! Want to Cancel That Service?
