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P.S. If you consider HN to be pg's personal playground, conceptually speaking it may already be monetized due to pg feeling that the knowledge/value/exposure he

P.S. If you consider HN to be pg's personal playground, conceptually speaking it may already be monetized due to pg feeling that the knowledge/value/exposure he gains from HN leads to him being more profitable. It's sort of a secondary form of profitability but it's totally a legit profit in my mind. It should encourage other millionaires to start and curate online communities around their interests.

jokermatt999 16y ago
Yes, my intention was not to imply HN isn't successful. It's incredibly successful imo; it's the best example that a good, quality community can be built and not lose focus. However, it is currently not economically successful. It could be monetized, maybe. However, subscriptions would drastically lower the number of commenters (better? Worse? Not sure.). Ads might be a good solution, because they could be very targetted, since this is a niche community.
- eru 16y ago
  A freemium model might work. Free will be as it is like now. Premium might offer some neat and personalized features---like mixing your own HN from the votes of people you select. Comments and submissions by free and premium users will be treated the same. So premium buys you a more interesting presentation, but not a bigger say in any debate.
- RickHull 16y ago
  > However, it is currently not economically successful. It could be monetized, maybe. Au contraire. It may be a "cost center", but I have no doubt that it has been enormously beneficial for YCombinator's bottom line, as a marketing effort.
  - rmk 16y ago
    I agree with this. Also, I have seen many of the yc companies post job ads here. Have they been successful in recruiting? If so, that is another way HN has helped yc.
  - duck 16y ago
    Marketing plus creating better entrepreneurs and thus in the end making better ideas/companies for YC to invest in.
tokenadult 16y ago
Yes, HN can have a different value model, because building a community of knowledgeable, start-up-oriented hackers builds Y Combinator's core business.
InclinedPlane 16y ago
Indeed. HN is simple enough to be comparatively inexpensive to run. HN helps generate interest in y-combinator amongst the most important target demographic. Almost certainly the benefits for y-combinator (increased submissions, greater visibility for YC funded companies, a larger and more engaged talent pool for people looking for YC help or looking to work at YC companies, etc.) exceed the cost of HN.

jokermatt999 16y ago

Yes, my intention was not to imply HN isn't successful. It's incredibly successful imo; it's the best example that a good, quality community can be built and not lose focus. However, it is currently not economically successful. It could be monetized, maybe. However, subscriptions would drastically lower the number of commenters (better? Worse? Not sure.). Ads might be a good solution, because they could be very targetted, since this is a niche community.

eru 16y ago
A freemium model might work. Free will be as it is like now. Premium might offer some neat and personalized features---like mixing your own HN from the votes of people you select. Comments and submissions by free and premium users will be treated the same. So premium buys you a more interesting presentation, but not a bigger say in any debate.
RickHull 16y ago
> However, it is currently not economically successful. It could be monetized, maybe. Au contraire. It may be a "cost center", but I have no doubt that it has been enormously beneficial for YCombinator's bottom line, as a marketing effort.
- rmk 16y ago
  I agree with this. Also, I have seen many of the yc companies post job ads here. Have they been successful in recruiting? If so, that is another way HN has helped yc.
- duck 16y ago
  Marketing plus creating better entrepreneurs and thus in the end making better ideas/companies for YC to invest in.

tokenadult 16y ago

Yes, HN can have a different value model, because building a community of knowledgeable, start-up-oriented hackers builds Y Combinator's core business.

InclinedPlane 16y ago

Indeed. HN is simple enough to be comparatively inexpensive to run. HN helps generate interest in y-combinator amongst the most important target demographic. Almost certainly the benefits for y-combinator (increased submissions, greater visibility for YC funded companies, a larger and more engaged talent pool for people looking for YC help or looking to work at YC companies, etc.) exceed the cost of HN.