Saturday, November 17, 2007

Small Story About Standing Up To Evil
Not sure why I remembered this story just now, but it's something I take great pride in

As some of you know I started a web hosting business in 2003, about the same time as myOtaku launched. The business was called Velegant Web Hosting. We were running out of money at the time and VBH helped generate the revenue we needed to stay afloat until things improved with the network. It was a white knight, so to speak, and I made sure everyone who signed up received the absolute best service and support.

(Business-wise, I saved the Velegant domain and registered the business behind the site as Velegant Media in honor of that project.)

One day I received an angry email. A man named Mr. Bacon had demanded that I shut down one of my client's websites immediately because of accusations related to copyright infringement, spamming, etc. This guy also threatened us saying that his lawyer would be in touch if we didn't act immediately

I was in a difficult position. We were just barely afloat financially and couldn't afford any type of legal trouble. Adding to it, this client was a difficult one who had a lot of time-intensive needs. I think most businesses would have just told him to go elsewhere and turned their attention to more profitable matters

Instead, I went into investigator mode and did a thorough check on the issue. It turned out the complaint was from my client's competitor, who from what I gathered, seemed like an all-around sleazy guy.

I emailed him and told him that I was under no circumstances shutting down that site and that he'd have to submit written proof of any wrong-doing. I was willing to put everything on the line for a client who was probably more trouble than he was worth

It was a bold move given our situation at the time, but in the end, after hurling more legal threats at us with no actual proof, he gave up. The client who I stood up for is still hosted with us, 4 years later
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