After dabbling in some self hosting for Ghost, I realised I was spending all my time doing technical stuff, instead of being able to just get on with it and create my site/newsletter/content in ghost.
I signed up to Magic Pages a few months ago on the pro lifetime plan. I have been very impressed with the quality of the service & also the support offered by Jannis on the occasions I have contacted him.
I’m really new to Ghost and still exploring to see if it has all the features I need, but if it does, I’ll definitely get one of your hosting packages. The lifetime option sounds pretty tempting, but I do wonder if having too many lifetime users could make the hosting setup unsustainable for you, or not bring in enough revenue long-term
Totally fair question. The lifetime plans originate from the tiny little side project, Magic Page started out as. Back in early 2023, when I started it, I had a single server, that I got as a lifetime deal myself (recycled hardware, basically).
So, back then, it was completely sustainable. Right now, the lifetime deals are actually a tiny amount compared to the subscriptions currently running on Magic Pages.
I wrote a little bit about the financial model behind Magic Pages on my personal blog:
In a nutshell, the monthly revenue is split into two parts. A predictable (monthly subscriptions) and an unpredictable (yearly subscriptions, lifetime plans, additional email purchases). The unpredictable is used for bigger investments (e.g. I just upgraded my laptop to run bigger development stacks there), whereas the predictable revenue is split in half.
50% of that pays for my running cost (servers, subscriptions for services I use), the other 50% goes towards a cash reserve.
This essentially buys me one month of additional runway, every month. So, even if everyone cancels tomorrow (please don’t ), there is already a good cash reserve to keep the lights on.
Also, I am not sure how long I’ll keep the lifetime plan around. Currently I am leaning towards removing it with the pricing overhaul in the beginning of 2025.
After getting in contact with Jannis for hosting my Ghost blog from Ghost Pro, I have to strongly recommend against Magic Pages.
I write a political blog which has been recommended multiple times by the artist George Burchett, son of notable Australian journalist Wilfred Burchett, and others. I also write for a political newspaper elsewhere and they have awarded me for my contributions.
Jannis refused to host my content due to his own biases, stating the nationality of a large part of his family. Ghost Pro has no problem with hosting my blog.
I have instead decided to go with Spectral Web Services to migrate my Ghost blog for long-term self-hosting.
Hey Tracey – I just typed an email reply to you, when I saw this post (so, my reply here and in the email will look similar, given that I have answered to both your email and this post).
I want to be absolutely clear in one thing: I fully respect your right to express your opinions and understand the importance of your viewpoints. However, as the sole proprietor of Magic Pages, I have to make sure that the content hosted on the platform is something I am personally comfortable with. Magic Pages is not a corporation, a separate legal entity, or anything else. Right now, it is acting as a sole trader in my name. If it comes to it, I am the one who needs to defend hosting every piece of content with authorities in the jurisdiction I am in.
Therefore yes, I have declined to host your content, because I am personally not comfortable with it being on my servers, running on my name. I am sure you will disagree with this, but some of the content can also be interpreted as a violation of the Acceptable Use Policy of Magic Pages, specifically the part that prohibits defamatory statements and the promotion of violence against individuals or groups.
Once again, I truly respect your right to express yourself and your opinions, but I would also ask for your understanding, that I have a right to choose who I do business with.
I wish you all the best in finding a hosting solution that suits your needs.