Over recent months I’ve been pondering an idea which I wanted to float past OMD fans regarding the Messages website and plans for the future…
I’ve been involved creatively with OMD for over 25 years now. Initially, it was starting out on fanzines such as Telegraph. That led to penning sleeve notes (and in some cases artwork) for a variety of OMD releases including the Architecture & Morality and Dazzle Ships remasters, the Navigation OMD B-sides compilation and The Id EP. I founded and ran the Official OMD Website for over 10 years and created the Messages website and magazine project as an official subsidiary. I’ve also acted as a technical advisor for a variety of other OMD projects over the years.
At the moment, the Messages site hosts semi-regular updates and articles which appear to receive a good reaction and response from the OMD community. It would be great to post up more content on a more regular basis, but that involves more time and more commitment. At the same time there are also costs involved in administrating and hosting the website itself.
I’m looking at the idea of engaging the services of a Patreon campaign. Similar to Kickstarter and other crowdfunding ventures, Patreon invites people to donate a set amount per month. It’s perhaps important to note that this isn’t a proposal for a paywall system and it isn’t an obligation for all OMD fans to contribute. These patrons also get to decide both the frequency and also the amount they pay.
This campaign will have no negative impact on the actual content hosted on the Messages site, which will continue to feature articles, reviews, guides and interviews as before – and all free as before. What it will do however is provide an opportunity for a percentage of the Messages audience to support the website and help me to devote more time to creating content.
At the same time, the Patreon campaign encourages goals (again, much like a Kickstarter) which could help the Messages website expand and evolve in the future. That expansion could involve moving into areas such as podcasts or video work or publications such as future issues of the Messages magazine.
Essentially, the involvement of a Patreon campaign will give me a greater commitment to producing content for the Messages website and will also integrate it much more closely with the OMD community.
I would be interested in hearing feedback from OMD fans about this idea and whether or not it would be something you would contribute to.
