Shutting Down the Web Market!

[Rene Marseille]

Dear Breeders,
Dear Customers,
Dear Friends!

I am shutting down the web market (http://kittycats.info/market)! Here is the reason:

Today (01/14/2017) I got yet another threatening message from Callie Cline, one of the owners of the KittyCatS, telling me that showing the prices on the website is against a free market and that I need to take it out or they will send a formal cease and desist, followed by a DMCA by their attorneys. She also tells me again and again that I am using their pictures illegally. And I can't take this any more, I will just shut it down, it's not worth all the work I do to help people.

I don't think she understands what a free market is. So showing the price is against a free market? I am not telling people what price to set, I am only asking them to show their prices. A free market should be transparent and compareable, without hidden prices to give some people the opportunity to scam people. In a free market with limited items, you can not change the prices anyway. The price will find itself only by demand and supply, assuming that prices and amounts are visible to everyone, which was the point of the web market.

The pictures that I am using on my website are only illegal if the owners don't allow me to use them. So it is up to Callie Cline and her team. I asked her many times, do you want me to use them or not, I can take them down. She always replied with a "We will think about it and get back to you". Same answer the whole year, so it was not illegal, but she used this as a way to keep threatening me with it.

Apparently Callie Cline doesn't want the best for her customers. The web market was a great help for the breeders, to search the cats they want very easily, to show what cats they have just with one click without spamming groups or forums. So Callie gave me 24 hours and this time I will do what she wants. She thinks that this is what the breeders want. If you disagree with her, please comment in her forum so she knows what you guys really want. Don't let 2 people tell her what all breeders want.

Have a nice day!

Rene Marseille

[Ivy Norsk]

Hmmm. Thank you for letting us know what is up. Perhaps Callie will put forward her side of the story.

If duplicating the pictures is illegal then I also wonder about the Build A Cat...

I have found the webmarket to be a useful tool for finding cats, and I thank you for the work that you have put into it.

[Minx Diabolito]

Isn't it possible to just go back to the way it was and have the market without showing prices on the site?

[Buttercupbabe078 Resident]

I think that it would be detrimental to us Kittycat sellers/buyers for the webmarket to be no longer. I like the pricing on the market also as it saves me no end of time and frustration finding a cat that I want at a price I am happy to pay. Also on the flip side my sales of cats has also increased since I priced all my kitties as again it makes things black and white for people.

It would be a real shame to loose out on such a useful tool.

[DasEbilOne Resident]

This is a true shame. I can only hope that since it is being taken away from us, perhaps she is willing to step up and replace it as other breedables have with searchable sale databases and direct teleport to buy links within the kittycats system. This has been an invaluable tool that has made the market far better, not worse. Thank you Rene for all of your work and time.

[Aldaida Resident]

So far this had been a very usefull tool for me to search for the cats i like.
More than that, thanks to this i also found out stores i did not even know or had heard about.

When the prices started being listed i was really excited. Finally no need to go from store to store for that specific trait i am looking for and for which i do not have thousands to spend(to not mention about the lag i have to face sometimes and the repeated crashing).

As a seller i am happy if my prices are shown in the web. Maybe i sell some cats more expensive than others but i have put these prices for a reason and surely that reason is not what is happening to other stores. Some stores next to mine have cheaper cats also.

I hope the web market will not be shut down and if the prices remain i will be glad.
If the prices have to be removed i will prefer that than not the web market at all.

Hope more people will tell their opinion and this issue will be solved soon in the best way.

[Ellen Ireland]

I am very sorry to hear this news. I find the webmarket extremely useful and I am sorry that there are legal issues with the continued operation of the service which is so beneficial to the breeders. Perhaps the dispute could be mediated by a third party to avoid the takedown? I could ask for volunteers from the Second Life Bar Association.

[CitizenMonday Resident]

I am fairly new to Kittycats! but the existence of the webmarket was one of the first things show me and one of my reasons for getting as into the product as I have. The searchable webmarket is an invaluable tool. I will feel as if something important has been taken from me if Rene is forced to shut it down. As far as the prices being shown, that is very helpful to me as both a buyer and as a seller. Its important to know your market and know what the prevailing rates are in order to price your own merchandise. Its also helpful as a shopper to know what is on offer and for what price. Sure, I'm susceptible as anyone else to an impulse purchase if the Kittycat on offer is just perfect. However, in an imperfect world, I am forced to weigh price against available options and make an informed choice.

Callie, I ask you to consider the investment I have personally made in your virtual product, multiply that by the number of new Kittycats! customers you are getting every day, and then consider my very strongly held opinion that Rene's webmarket is a valuable tool and the pricing is a bonus and not a detriment.

I don't know what else I can say except to please, don't force this service out of the market over pricing. The pricing is welcomed by me and by others.

Thank you.

Citizenmonday

[Aubreygrace Starlight]

I think we should see what Callie says. But I have also used the web market and it's been a big help when trying to find cats at a price I can pay. I also believe by having some of my cats up there I have made a few sales.

But if somethings illegal it shouldn't be done maybe there's a way you and Callie can work something out. I do still love going to auctions and just browsing markets. I love to just walk around and look but at times when I needed certain things the market was a useful tool thanks for the work you did with it

[1GaJulia Resident]

Indeed, it was the best tool for breeding and trade KittiCats. It was so convenient for all of us. Even when there was a graph with the price. It is easier to find the cat and the best prices. I also put the price for my cats, maybe it was higher than in other stores. But it's my choice and the choice of any customer. It will be very sorry to lose webmarket.
I also want to learn different opinion. After all, some people were not satisfied with the work webmarket and established rules.