Once again, the annual BigBlueInteractive.com (BBI) donation campaign has arrived. The purpose of the campaign is to generate an operating profit for the owner of the site and thereby keep BBI in existence. Without such operating profit, BBI will be shut down.

I fully understand and appreciate the fact that many of our readers may not have as much money to spend this year as in the past. Rising fuel and food prices have hurt families. And many readers have already spent quite a bit of money on Giants-related merchandise due to the Championship season. But if you value BBI, it is important for you to contribute. While advertising revenue has increased, our costs have increased too. I moved to a new server, hired a new site developer, and have begun paying people for original content such as draft previews, training camp reports, and game reviews.

The site has roughly 6,000 registered members and at least another 20,000 regular unregistered readers. Last year, approximately 700 people donated from amounts as little as $2.00.

What is BBI worth to you? Many people pay $4 a workday for a cup of coffee. That translates to over $900 per year. I am not asking for that. A $50 donation is the equivalent of less than 14 cents per day. Is BBI worth 14 cents a day to you? Is it worth more, is it worth less? Any amount will help.

The 2008 donation campaign will only run through September 3rd.

How Should You Donate?

If you are interested in donating, you can do so either by mailing me a check via regular mail or performing the transaction electronically via PayPal.

BY MAIL

Send your check, payable to Eric Kennedy (Not BBI or BigBlueInteractive.com) to the following address:

Eric Kennedy
P.O. Box 14
Washington, DC 20044

BY PAYPAL

PayPal is a service that allows anyone to pay in any way they prefer, including through credit cards, bank accounts, buyer credit, or account balances, without sharing financial information. PayPal has quickly become a global leader in online payment solutions with more than 164 million accounts worldwide. Available in 190 markets and 17 currencies around the world, PayPal enables global ecommerce by making payments possible across different locations, currencies, and languages. PayPal has received more than 20 awards for excellence from the internet industry and the business community - most recently the 2006 Webby Award for Best Financial Services Site and the 2006 Webby People’s Voice Award for Best Financial Services Site. Located in San Jose, California, PayPal was founded in 1998 and was acquired by eBay in 2002.

For those who donate, PayPal is free to use (though 2.9% + $0.30 of your donation will go to PayPal in the form of a transaction fee). You can even make a payment without establishing an account with PayPal by using your credit card. PayPal keeps your financial information private. When you pay using PayPal, BBI never sees your credit card or bank account numbers.

Warning About “Phishing” Attacks: In recent years, there has been an upsurge of phishing e-mail attacks on the internet. What is phishing? Phishing is a technique used by criminals to gain your trust in order to convince you to reveal information that you would not ordinarily provide. Specifically, in a phishing attack, you would receive an e-mail from a person or group masquerading as a trustworthy government agency or business (in our example, let’s use PayPal, but this could any official entity such as the IRS, a bank, or investment broker) requesting personal account information. NEVER respond directly to these e-mails - especially through the links provided, no matter how authentic the e-mails look! If you think an e-mail might be legitimate, contact the government agency or company via their official website or by telephone.

For more information on PayPal security, including their privacy policy and warnings on fraudulent e-mail, please see PayPal’s Security Center.

To donate now, please click on the following PayPal button: