How does craigslist make money?

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How does the site support itself? I know it's lightweight but there must be some server costs. Or is Craig just really cool for giving away this service for free?

― Hello from Mars (calstars), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 03:51 (twenty-one years ago)

Bankrate: Tell me about the business structure of the site.

Craig Newmark: In terms of our normal organization, we are neither a nonprofit nor a conventional for-profit commercial company. We're something in between, and there is no term to describe what we do. On paper, we're a for-profit. But we just don't run like that.

Bankrate: In what sense?

Craig Newmark: We don't take banner ads or pop-up ads. And, we've been offered tens of millions for the company, and we said no.

Bankrate: Since there are no ads, where does the income derive from?

Craig Newmark: We charge job posters in the San Francisco area for job postings.

Bankrate: Only in San Francisco?

Craig Newmark: Correct. We're considering charging recruiters and employers in New York, maybe Los Angeles, but that's it. About two, three years ago, we asked the Craig's List community what it was appropriate to charge for, and they told us to charge for job postings and apartment postings, and that's about it.

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 05:17 (twenty-one years ago)

update: we now have a conversation going with job posters in la and ny, and they don't seem to care if we charge there like in sf, as long as we remember the little guy, people who can't afford $75.

We're thinking about it more.

Craig

― Craig Newmark, Wednesday, 23 June 2004 12:23 (twenty-one years ago)

!!! ??? !!!

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:22 (twenty-one years ago)

Craig you should get rid of all the scam job listings.

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:24 (twenty-one years ago)

also, there are a number of job listings (at least in NYC) that could expose Craig's List to unequal employment opps liability (ie. all the stupid "Bartender wanted - only hot girls need apply" shit).

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:28 (twenty-one years ago)

would that expose craigslist to liability? they just list jobs, they don't offer them themselves.

― kyle (akmonday), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:31 (twenty-one years ago)

WTF, is that really Craig?

― Shake Your Halo Down! (ex machina), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:35 (twenty-one years ago)

xpost - I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure newspapers don't list ads like that for the same reason.

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:36 (twenty-one years ago)

yes that is really craig.

― kyle (akmonday), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 13:43 (twenty-one years ago)

does he lurk? or is AKM fwd-ing related posts?

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 14:18 (twenty-one years ago)

AKM? I'm sure he reads the referer logs like certain other people do.

― Shake Your Halo Down! (ex machina), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 14:19 (twenty-one years ago)

there was no link to CL in this post and yet CM posted back within 24 hours of original thread time.

HI DAVE AT CCA DOT ORG!!!

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 23 June 2004 14:27 (twenty-one years ago)

one month passes...

http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/05/technology/techinvestor/hellweg/index.htm

Is Craigslist a Google 2.0?
Craigslist's growth and fanatical user devotion can't be discounted. Will it ever go public?
August 5, 2004: 3:30 PM EDT
By Eric Hellweg, CNN/Money contributing columnist

― Red Panda Sanskrit (ex machina), Friday, 6 August 2004 13:05 (twenty-one years ago)

three years pass...

return of the mack
rerturn of craig mack

― sanskrit, Tuesday, 18 September 2007 15:07 (eighteen years ago)

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