StarTrek.com Hangs In the Balance As CBS and Viacom Split

[HoS'etlh]

StarTrek.com Hangs In the Balance As CBS and Viacom Split

http://www.trektoday.com/news/061205_03.shtml

Tim Gaskill, editorial director at the official Star Trek web site, has sent out an e-mail to people involved with Star Trek to alert them that Paramount Digital Entertainment will be shut down at the end of the year, leaving the fate of StarTrek.com in limbo.

"As if we needed further reminding that the fate of Star Trek is a tenuous one at best, it has been announced that Paramount Digital Entertainment, the home to STARTREK.COM since 1996, is shutting its doors as of 12/31/05," Gaskill wrote to current and former Paramount and Star Trek staffers.

"Rather than go quietly, we are in the midst of preparing a presentation for the powers-that-be designed to show the vast scope and depth to the site, and how it is a 'go to' site for anyone in the world in search of Star Trek information."

Gaskill noted that the split of Viacom and CBS had cost many jobs on the Paramount lot. Moreover, he explained that the division of the giant media corporation had not yet settled Star Trek with either Paramount Pictures or the television production division: "We think CBS will be taking it over. (Even though it will be forever identified as a Paramount product.) As a result of this lack of clarification on the ownership of the franchise, the fate of STARTREK.COM also hangs in the balance."

Gaskill asked people involved with Star Trek whether they would be willing to write testimonials on behalf of StarTrek.com to use in the presentation to try to preserve the web site. "It would be very gratefully received," he said, admitting that his own job, which has included recording commentary for podcasts, is one that will terminate at the end of 2005 unless new plans are made for the site.

"This is a great franchise and it would be sad to see it sink into an abyss of lost TV and movie franchises. I would like to think that we could do better...STARTREK.COM is used not only by fans of the show, but by licensees to promote their products, various Paramount departments (including production), convention organizers, news organizations, advertisers, etc." Gaskill concluded, saying that the site's value for the franchise and the studio would be difficult to assess.

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If you'd like to send an email testimonial to help save the site please send asap to editor@startrek.com   

[Abbot Nej vIt]

You Know, I'll probably get Marched out of the Room with my Geek Membership Seriously in Question, but I am not Terribly Offended by this Prospect... I Mean ST.Com was Really a News Feed for The Series... And Since there are No More (And May Never Be again), any New Trek, it really is sort of Superfluous... After all Fan Sites Have Dedicated significantly more Time to the Actual Resources, and are Occasionally Better Organized as well...

I Really do Not think that I Will Miss ST.Com, though I Do Hope Someone Takes the Time to Copy all of the ENT Episode Synopsis before they Go away... (I Still have Not Seen Seasons Two thru Four or I would Just Do it)...

There are on the Other Hand some Fan Sites that I Would Really Hate to See Go Away...!

[Kesvirit]

And I will be following you, with my both my head and my Klingeek certification papers held high.  StarTrek.com is little more than one big commercial and propoganda pipeline for the Paraborgs’ TIIC. It is my opinion that it has served its purpose and ready to be retired.  It is the fan sites that are the Heart of Trek, and I suspect they will remain so long after TIIC have moved on to other cash cows. And I have found far more useful information from the likes of the Daystrom Institute Technical Library and Ex Astris Scientia than the big splashy commercial ones like StarTrek.com and the About.com.

As to archiving the site’s content to preserve things like plot synopses, I do not think that the StarTrek.com’s owners will want to pay for the sort of bandwidth that it would take to mothball the site and still leave it up.

[Abbot Nej vIt]

Though Not a "Fan" site as Such, Wikipedia is a HUGE asset to Any Research Project, ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page ), And the Best Part is that it is "User" Edited, so if there is a Topic that is Lacking in Info, and You Have the Info You Can actually Add to it... It is a Nifty Resource, and has a lot of Trek and Klingon Specific Info included on the Site...

(I am Probably Not Telling anyone Here anything New, but I Figured I'd throw it out there)...

[HoS'etlh]

As per a post on the Star Trek Messaging boards from one of the official moderators, STARTREK.COM will not be closing.

Hopefully this means that Paramount still sees some value in Star Trek.

[GTman05]

As per a post on the Star Trek Messaging boards from one of the official moderators, STARTREK.COM will not be closing.

from what i hear, thats one of the most popular sites on the internet, so even if ST is nolonger broadcast on tv STARTREK.COM will live on.