So what if once the deal is done we as a community object to the company? Is there any way of finding out what 'business' they are in without giving a name?The sponsor has requested we don't divulge who they are until the deal is signed and launched.
As someone who considers themselves an ethical shopper, I would object to a company that may be unethical.
Would it stop me caching? probably not, but it would make me think twice finding GCA caches (not that I do too many now) and also about donating $200 worth of merchandise to a cause I believe in.
GC's sponsors are in the business of caching, Apart from the Jeep thing, which I was never really keen on anyway. Commercialism doesn't impact the way we use GC in Australia and I would hope it would be the same for whoever sponsors GCA if we go down that alley.
And it's probably just because most people would give the same reaction as my dad did the day we started caching. He found an online article and showed us what 'geeks do for fun'There have been articles in major newspapers, Canberra Chronicle, Good Weekend Magazine in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald, Sunday Telegraph. They didn't generate hordes of new players.
Bit of a laugh but you probably wouldn't try it just for the hell of it if you weren't really interested.
However...if there was a years supply of chocolate to be won, all my girlfriends who currently think I'm wierd, would be begging me to take them caching. It's all about the incentive.
What would be bad about it being a mainstream game?
More people, more people only half interested and not putting time and effort into caches that everyone seems to complain about, more mugglers, more cache trails. How big will events be? Just look at how many followers went to get the extra cache at the GEGP event.
Personally, I like the apparent secrecy of the game. A mainstream game is not something that appeals to me, but it is each to their own. It's hard to explain why. Just like I prefer watching and listening to the ABC.
If we do go down the sponsorship side, can we keep the forums separate? Surely there are enough donations now to keep the forum side of GCA going for many years to come without the need for commercialism. That way those who don't find GCA caches don't have to worry about the ads etc.
A note from Adam, The CFA stream website is 'sponsored' by small businesses interested in fire, so it's a very targeted market. Apart from sponsors they have an awesome deal hosting the site and it may be worth looking into who they are dealing with before we launch into any major sponsorship deal.