I have been wondering about this for a while. How much money you guys get from each place and where it ultimately ends up. I know that finances are one of the touchy subjects for most people, and you might have other reasons for not wanting people to know the inner workings, but I am always just really curious. How much are you guys getting from the store, from the music, from the patreon (which we can see), and where does it end up getting spent?
Logan mentioned that the money from Zweihander is going towards the game and that the money from patreon is going towards nothing but content for the channel and whatnot. But where are you getting money to pay rent and eat and whatnot? Does the store cover everything else? Do you guys have another source of income? It just seems like with your stances on transparency in government that you might be open to making some of this information available to the audience. Even just a basic flow chart or something that shows us where our money is going would be great.
Except this is a form of entertainment and where their money goes is none of our business. It's -sssslighty- less true if you're a patreon giver, but even then unless you're giving a substantial amount of money it's none of our business. If you don't think the money is going to the right place, don't give.
For a contrasting opinion - the Tek crew could choose to make their business finances transparent, because of their political stancs, etc. As far as an organization that seems primarily intended not to entertain, but to educate and illuminate, this makes sense.
As far as it being entertainment... no, it's not, not really. Tek Syndicate isn't a TV show or even put together anything like that. This isn't Mythbusters, which I chose as an example because in my opinion that show balanced entertainment and truth really well. Zweihander specifically is of course entertainment, but Zweihander is a single part of a larger whole.
I'm not a patreon patron or anything like that (yet, anyhow) and as such I don't think I should be privy to this information. However, those who are, I think should have read access to "the books" as it were.
As far as how the Tek crew pays rent and eats... no one's business. Personal finances are personal. All I think should be available (like I said, to patrons), is the business side of things. If TS pays Logan an income, that'll be in there, and if you really really wanted to know how he eats, that'd be a starting point.
You're supporting content creators, you SHOULD know where your money is going if you're throwing it at someone in exchange for content. it's no different than supporting lets say a Linux project, or a Software project. you paid them to fund their project. not fund their pockets.
Does it mean there needs to be an extreme form of transparency? honestly no. though it would be nice to know.. on a secondary side note; we kinda already know where our money is going. we can clearly see it on the patreon webpage for Tek Syndicate.
Not an expert here, but one aspect I could see this being an issue is with their YouTube Ad-Sense. With the current contracts, they can't make their earnings public. At least that's my understanding about it.
I'm as curious about the business as much as the next person, but its not our concern. One exception to this I could see is making the financial information from patreon only public. Even that is a stretch for me. I think it is obvious where the money is going because they are hiring more people. More people, means more time for other content which is what the goal of the patreon was to begin with.
Basically what I'm trying to say is, in my opinion, their finances aren't our concern and money is probably being spent on new hires which allows for more content to be produced.
I'd the vast majority of monetary support comes from indirect means, i.e. advertisement. If you're right, and the majority of the comes from direct donations, then I agree with all aspects.
On an off-note feel like the content has gotten...crappier, lately. I can't put a finger on it, but I don't seem to be enjoying the content as much as I was 2-3 years ago. Maybe because it seems like all the content feels like it's an afterthought to the hosts instead of a primary concern and a passion. You can go back to the older episodes and see a more energetic Logan and Wendell being Wendell. I still appreciate Logans effort with the show, and Wendell is still one of my favorite people.
That said, I still started up my patreon support a few days ago with the hopes that it will get better going forward. Even so, I don't feel like we need to know where the money is going. They'll do with it what they see fit.
Hmm I have to point out though that you only have to enjoy there content to support it. Transparency would help to reinforce your thought that they are what you think they are. Its really impossible to say you Know 100% of what any patron or kickstarter does unless they are transparent.
Now do not get me wrong I am not saying you need that level of transparency.
Logan has stated on Numerous occasions in videos, that he doesn't do sponsors too often. Since the Patreon launch, most if not all of the income comes from the Community, the sales from the store, the sales from the music that Logan creates, the money from Tek Support. (which will hide the advertisements from the site in exchange for a mild donation every month.) and so on.
As for the content getting crappier.. I don't know. but honestly it's mainly because nothing really exciting is happening in the Tech World. I mean you see a lot of content during CES, Computex and PAX. that's where exciting stuff come. but for WASD I think it has to do with the mild awkwardness which in my opinion appears to be there. you can clearly see it in the pilot episode for example.
As for the TEK. I feel like nothing has changed. which kinda is the problem. though "if ain't broke.. don't fix it". Qain has been more active which is nice.. considering previously Qain was active like once or twice every few months. As for Pistol content, I wouldn't know anything. she tends to be a ghost. from what we know from previous mentions in the TEK, she does alot of the editing and back-end stuff. though doesn't like to be in front of the camera too often. with the exception of WASD and her personal streams.
True, however after a while it cost money to produce this content. nothing is free in this world. you need the proper hardware, you need the support (like employees) you can't do everything by yourself you know.
What an interesting question. Well lets look at Financial Transparency. I will pick an organization that is actually required by law to be transparent - The American Red Cross, a NON-profit organization. Everyone in the operation minus volunteers receive a pay check, the top check being $500,000+ (usd). Now lets lay that template over the top of TekSynInc. Well, my conclusion is, yep if my $1.00 buys Logan a frothy adult beverage or a small bag of stale poop nuts on his flight to anywhere to report anything that might possible be important to me, I'm good with that for sure. If I won the powerball lottery, I would buy all the patreon spots for life and call it a good day. At the end of the day, no right answer to the question.
Of course, there is the fact that this is a business that operates inside the U.S. borders so I am positive somebody at the IRS knows exactly where and what the financials are.
It needs to be translucent. we know about some but not all finances. Patron get more insight then non-patron. I DO trust logan about the money because he doesnt seem like the kinda of person to be like "Let's see if we can get all of these idiots to give us money." but it would be nice to know what and how the money is spent. Look at linus. He has like 4 or 5 editors for his content. Stuff like scrapyard wars takes time to edit when you have 4-5 days of content at 8 hours a day.
The content does seem like it has lost its edge. Logan is less like logan, but with everything that is going on. It makes sense. Wendell is still the crazy super nerd, but does not hide behind the camera. Qain is still Qain.
Logan, and his team don't have to list every little detail, but they could instead just outline / itemise a basic summary of the expenses the Tek incurs to settle the curiosity of those seeking 'transparency'.
A financial outline as depicted on the chart below would suffice.
*the figures on this chart are purely fictional for demonstration purposes
If there is a specific project that funds are being requested for, it would be nice to know about how they are spent. Otherwise, meh. If the crew decides to release that information, or decide to do it privately to those who donate to them or request it, that would be cool too.
Personally I'm stuck in the middle on this topic. I am a Patron and when I signed up for that, nothing was mentioned about Patreon supporters having any access to any financial information. If that was a deal-breaker for me then I simply wouldn't have signed up.
I would however be interested in seeing some information like this for my own curiosity. TS is a pretty interesting business model and seeing how that works would be cool. I guess it would also be kind of reassuring to see that the money is being well-spent but again, I obviously had reason to believe it would be in the first place.
Personally I hope that all of the Tek crew make an above average living out of all this because if they aren't getting enough out of it to make their quality of life decent, we aren't going to get good content.
I would hate for there to be a situation where every time one of the crew tweets about something they are enjoying, they get asked to justify spending money on it from people who don't understand that it isn't their place to do so.
As far as the music and the store are concerned, I feel that those budgets are up to the Tek, as they send you a product for your money with the understanding you spend X and get Y, therefore, you know exactly where that money went. Their use of the profits are up to them as you agreed to pay that price and receive that merchandise. If you sell your PC, the buyer is not entitled to know what you will use the money for.
The pateron thing is not the same. I feel some transparency would be a good thing. But before that happens, I feel Patrons should be aware that their money COULD be used for mundane things, such as the electric bill, lunch, or gas. not everything will go towards a giant noble goal. you should understand this before you donate. However I also feel that some transparency should be had to assure everyone that incredible inflatable arm flailing tube men are not decorating the house (funded by patreon) I think that would actually be awesome if it was funded by music, but I digress.
TL;DR the proceeds from music and merch are accounted for by the fact you got a good. Patreon need transparency to have SOME accountability, but as a patron you need to understand mundane, yet mandatory things must be paid for. Transparency is NOT a flail to beat the crew with if they eat a steak once in a while.
Considering the people that host successful tv shows and the income they have. What is a fair wage, and is Patreon realistically capable of producing that?
If logan decides to divulge any financial information, which it seems like he will, expect a general overview.
Hes right in that we don't have a right to see detailed financial information.
For patreon and tek support members, it might be nice to have a general overview of how the money is used, if only because it would be interesting to see how this kind of business runs financially.
One of the problems with the internet is how incredibly entitled people think they are and how they somehow have a say in exactly how their money is spent. Some people, for whatever reason, seem to think that they cant spend the money on food, or wages, or decoration etc, and its completely absurd. But its a perfectly valid reason for not releasing financial information, someone somewhere is always going to have a very loud fit because you spent money on something they didn't like.
woah, woah, woah there! I thought the majority of their flights are paid for by their sponsors? Not sure how much that can be that high if they go only on "sponsored" trips. Using Travelocity or frequent flying miles could also save them a few thousands. I'm sure they are moving cuz they are abusing the 3 months rent as 1 month introductory pricing. But I would definitely see that their productivity would increase if they just made production inside their parent's basement.
Maybe instead of flying they could hitch a ride only or do fan-service drives like those YTers who like get passed across country only using friends and fan members.
