Dinkin wrote:
Does advertiser supported TV and free search and email from Google give you creepy feelings?

Decius: No, but the Internet is full of scams, and so one learns to be skeptical after a while, particularly when things seem too good to be true. If my skepticism is unwarranted than I apologize, but I do think your FAQ should address your business model a bit more.

Dinkin: No apology necessary. For more on the business model, see http://www.thespacereview.com/article/783/1 and keep the questions coming. If people watch 15 ads per prediction, that's 1.5 cents per prediction at a $1 per thousand ad rate. 400,000 predictions and you have enough for a parabolic airplane flight. Millions for a space flight. Billions for an around the Moon flight. Then it's just a question of how many how frequently. Plus once we hit 10,000 users we can raise our ad rates by hiring a full time ad seller potentially 4-8 times as much.

Dinkin: To raise $150 million for a $100 million flight around the Moon will take lots of ads. Our estimate is one million people playing daily for three hours a day for a year.

Decius: ... Three hours a day every day for a year is a lot to ask in exchange for a one in a million chance at winning a space flight. If I spent that same amount of time studying Aerospace Engineering I'll bet I could beat those odds. Of course, I'm not 13.

Dinkin: There have been less than 1,000 people who have ever flown into space and there will be fewer NASA astronauts when shuttle is canceled, not more. Less than 20 per year. But you can go full steam for becoming a NASA astronaut and still play Free Space Shot!

Decius: If I might offer some advice, you should consider adding additional games. You really need an engrossing experience to capture the attention levels you are aiming for, or you need several orders of magnitude more people involved.

Dinkin: Yes, we will add games, languages and prizes. Spanish is scheduled for 1Q07, a new game and some new prizes in second half. But the new game will also be simple and cheap. It's expensive to license or build a hit game and not every game is a hit. So we will likely need VC funding before you see a game like you might find in a game store for $50 from us.

RE: Free Space Shot?!