Paid Subscriptions
GameSpot formerly had a paid subscription service known as "GameSpot Complete". On February 21, 2006, the paid subscription model was changed. It now maintains two paid membership services: Total Access and Plus.
Total Access is essentially a replacement of GameSpot Complete, as it is the same price of US$5.95 per month or $39.95 per year and offers the same basic benefits. The second premium service, GameSpot Plus, is a cheaper, intermediate-level service.
The main advantage of a paid subscription is that ads are removed that would otherwise appear with a free GameSpot account. It bears mentioning that some ads will still appear with a paid subscription if GameSpot sponsors a contest and that contest is then sponsored by an advertiser. For example, in 2008, Stride gum ads appeared throughout the website, even if the user was a paying subscriber.
The major difference between the old and new membership services is the lack of GameSpot Complete's 10 percent discount at EBGames.com. There was much discontent over this decision, and for a while, GameSpot claimed to have an unspecified replacement in the works. No further details were ever provided.
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