In ‘PotterMore is No More’ I discussed the announcement that Rowling, Inc., had made that the web site dedicated to serving (servicing?) Harry Potter fandom was to be renamed WizardingWorld.com and that a gold membership in that site’s Harry Potter Fan Club would come at the cost of an annual subscription, i.e., the site would no longer free to all.

Last week the roll-out continued with an announcement of what a gold membership in the Harry Potter Fan Club would include as exclusive benefits and how much it would cost. The benefits are essentially pathways to participate in fandom destinations and events (read them all here) and the cost is “$74.99 (US) or £59.99 (UK) per year.”

That’s just over 22 cents a day to receive bulletins about what’s going on in the Rowling universe and how you can participate by purchasing something from them.  Having to pay to receive what are largely inducements to buy more Rowling, Inc., memorabilia and packaged ‘fan experiences’ is galling, no?

That said, it remains a source of wonder to me that Rowling has paid her PotterMore staff millions of galleons for close to a decade to create and maintain a website that brought in money only from the sale of eBooks. I’m curious about how many serious Potter Pundits will feel obliged as I do to subscribe — let me know in the comment boxes below what your plans are — but, galled as I may be at having to pay this fee, I find it hard to resent anyone wanting to be paid for services provided.

Your thoughts?

For sale today at BodenUSA.com: off the rack children’s Halloween costumes with Harry Potter themes.

My first thoughts are “Isn’t the fun in making your own costume?” and “One more cashing in on the global shared text (let’s hope we get a cure for MS out of all this.”

What do you think?

PotterMore.com is now WizardingWorld.com which is the name change covering a host of new online fandom fun from ‘Wizarding World Digital.’ The short story? JKR, Inc., is monetizing PotterMore at long last. Here is the official announcement:

Wizarding World Digital today announces the launch of The Official Harry Potter Fan Club, which can be experienced through the first ever Wizarding World app – a Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts mobile companion, and new, interactive Wizarding World website. Whether you’ve considered Hogwarts a home for over 20 years, or you’ve only recently been bewitched by a Niffler, everyone can now immerse themselves in the ever-expanding magical universe in new and innovative ways.

The Wizarding World app allows users to discover which house they belong to with a re-imagining of the famous Hogwarts Sorting Ceremony, featuring J.K. Rowling’s original questions and a new augmented reality Sorting Hat, whilst those fans that have been previously sorted can reaffirm their house pride. The new app is also packed with fresh content including exclusive videos, interactive quizzes and Secret Codes, plus the new fanzine ‘Wizarding Weekly’, putting the best of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts right at your fingertips.

WizardingWorld.com – the new online home of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts is where fans can enjoy all they loved from Pottermore.com, but with a trunk full of original content and new interactive experiences. Delve deeper into the stories you love, get behind-the-scenes details and enjoy all your favorites from J.K Rowling’s archive of writing for Pottermore.

Accessible through both the app and the website, fans will be able to join The Official Harry Potter Fan Club for free. This will provide them with curated experiences from the Wizarding World, including an official Fan Club newsletter and member benefits. And soon, fans will have the option to enhance their membership experience with Wizarding World Gold, a yearly paid subscription that comes with a unique, annual gift and is packed with exclusives and special offers – all of the magic you love and more!

All these great experiences and features can be unlocked by registering for a personalised Wizarding Passport which is a fan’s magical identity and holds their defining traits such as their Hogwarts house, Patronus and Wand.

Paul Kanareck, Managing Director of Wizarding World Digital says: ‘The Harry Potter global phenomenon continues to be loved by fans of all ages – from the millions of people who discover the books for the first time to those who explore the movies, audiobooks, stage play, visitor attractions and games each year. We have a wonderful opportunity to create new experiences including a fan club for the digital age, which offers an amazing breadth of content and new interactive platforms that will give our fans around the world a truly connected experience across the Wizarding World universe.’

The Wizarding World app, available with the newly reimagined Hogwarts Sorting Ceremony can be downloaded today for free in the initial launch territories on the App Store for iPhone and Google Play for Android. Selected features will also be hosted globally online at WizardingWorld.com for fans who cannot access the app at this stage.

As with the Cursed Child logo being brought into line with the published books and released films, this consolidation of PotterMore into the Wizarding World, Inc., monolith is just about making a loss-leader that sustains fan interest into a bona fide money maker, the aptly named ‘Wizarding World Gold.’ I am surprised only that it took them this long to monetize their principal web site, that so much of the content will still be free, and that anyone begrudges Rowling and her minions the Galleons of global gold they’ll be depositing in Gringotts for decades.

Your thoughts?