We're in the era of trillion-dollar companies, but that doesn't mean you should leave $5 on the table!
Take, for example, Photobucket. In case you've never heard of it, it is the Imgur-equivalent of ages ago. I was using it as a kid to upload images there and link them on various forums. A nice, simple website that just did its job.
So what's my old pal Photobucket doing now?
Well, recently, I was going through my old accounts and started cleaning them up. Deleting what needs to be deleted, restoring passwords to what was no longer working, things like that1...
And that's how I remembered about Photobucket!
Now, mind you, that was after I'd already found my old Imgur account with hundreds of old (and nostalgic!) screenshots that I then backed up safely. So I was really excited! This Photobucket account must have been... damn... even older! Who knows what remnants of my childhood I'll find there?
And so, I logged in expectantly. Ready to be amazed! Prepared to drop a nostalgia tear! Excited to finally...
Wait, WHAT?!!
You shared them. We protected them.
...
AGAINST WHAT?!! Because it sure as hell isn't against corporate greed! More like:
You shared them. We paywalled them. (And you should thank us!)
So I now have to pay for the images I uploaded on a (previously) free service?!! No way, I'm not doing that! Take my images and keep them on your servers until you go bankrupt! I won't endorse such behavior by giving you money.
I'm no fool!
...
But... I mean it's just $5... Surely my childhood memories must be worth more than that, right? And I guess it's kinda nice they didn't delete them... So, okay, I'll give this some thought and...
$5... PER MONTH?!!
So this unassuming claim:
It's time to relive them for just $5.
from the sweet-sweet Photobucket Inc. was missing just a tiny little detail... a footnote... some legalese, as you might say... That it's a MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION, MAYBE?!!
THE. BLATANT. GREED!
So they're hoping that I'm curious, I pay for this crap, and then forget about my MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION? Oh no, no, no. That's almost evil. Paywalling my childhood memories in order to trap me into accidentally subscribing to your useless service? Hoping I'd then cancel it after maybe a few years, when I finally notice an odd expense on my card?
NO.
Just no. I won't stand for this. Childhood memories be damned!
Aw man... I really wonder what's in there... I mean it's just a subscription... I pay the $5, I download my images, I cancel the subscription, and I'm outta there. May God be my witness that it wasn't an easy call, that I fought for my dignity!
Ok, let's do this quickly. I want to minimize the pain.
Enter the card details... click on Pay by Card... wait a bit...
And I'm in!
Finally! Really wondering what's in here! Let's take a... look......
Oh... No...
IS IT FREAKING EMPTY?!!
...
I think I hate myself now. I'm such a fool!!! That's what I get for going along with these predatory tactics... Should've known this would happen. I guess I was using a different, even older Photobucket account as a kid, or something.
...
Wait.
Photobucket. You must have known I don't have any images on my account. AND YOU STILL MADE ME PAY?!! Reclaim your memories my ass.
That's it, I'm done.
I knew I forgot something!
Okay. Now I'm done.
Editor's note
As I was writing and reliving this beautiful experience, I noticed a little footnote on the payments page:
Did I notice this in time to request the refund? Of course I didn't. Those 5 beautiful dollars are forever gone.
But maybe this helps someone... Yay to the movement against corporate greed!... 🍻
Update
This post ended up being pretty popular on Hacker News with lots of fun discussions. Two things worth mentioning:
Just to be extra clear, I don't believe Photobucket intentionally deleted all the images I uploaded and then asked for $5/mo just because they hate me. While I do remember uploading things there as a kid, I bet I was using an even older account.
It was suggested that I request a chargeback from my card. Apparently debit cards also allow them, didn't know this! I might give it a shot, who knows, maybe I'll end up paying $0 for this story!
...
Ok, no, paying $0 won't happen. Apparently using Vercel to host a personal blog might not be the best idea (even though it's a static site!). I'm nearly reaching the limit of Edge Requests in just 2 hours after the post. According to trustworthy Claude, the site will go down if I surpass it?...
So I'll probably end up doing this2:
No mention of any refunds though, I checked! :P
