Explanation of the SmartKnowledgeU™ Membership Pricing Schemes"
All SmartKnowledgeU™ services are priced upon a gold standard established during the first quarter, 2009, when gold was trading near a multi-year high at $900 per fine troy ounce. In deference to our customers, though we had been contemplating this change for since late 2007, we waited until the first quarter, 2009, when the price of gold reached a price much more favorable to our customers to make this change. For example, as recently as November, 2008, the average monthly price of gold was at $760 per troy ounce. Instead, we chose a much higher average price of gold at $900 a fine troy ounce to announce the conversion of our prices to a gold standard. We have also chosen to institute a gold standard effective as of April 1, 2009 in an attempt to alert all people to the merits of sound money such as gold versus unsound fiat (paper) money. We are so confident in the merits of gold as money that should the price of gold drop in terms of US dollars, we are willing to accept the resultant lesser US dollar price for our services. The prices for all of our services are now fixed to a constant amount of gold and we will re-price all of our services on the 1st of every month based upon the average price of an ounce of gold for the prior month. Below is the USD conversion rate for the current month based upon our gold standard. For a DESCRIPTION of all services, please click on the Membership Options button above.
The New Gold Equivalent Prices of our Memberships for February, 2010 based upon the average January price of gold ($1,117.96 per ounce)
Regular Memberships
Wealth Secrets Membership Promotional 50% discount available for a limited time now.= USD $1,680.00
Crisis Investment Opportunity (CIO) newsletter 0.5000 ounces of gold= USD $560.00
Platinum Membership 7.00 ounces of gold= USD $7,825.00
Platinum Membership,2 Semi-Annual Payments 3.6667 ounces of gold= USD $4,100.00
Platinum Membership renewal 0.5522 ounces of gold= USD $615.00
Private Consultation 8.1889 ounces of gold= USD $9,155.00
Private Consultation,2 Semi-Annual Payments 4.1667 ounces of gold= USD $4,660.00
Corporate Consultation,Half Day 5.0000 ounces of gold= USD $5,590.00
Corporate Consultation,Full Day 10.0000 ounces of gold= USD $11,180.00
Package Memberships
Platinum Membership + CIO newsletter 7.3333 ounces of gold= USD $8,200.00
Package Upgrades
Upgrade: Platinum to Private Consultation 1.2222 ounces of gold= USD $1,370.00
Upgrade: Platinum to Platinum & CIO newsletter 0.3333 ounces of gold= USD $375.00
Upgrade: Wealth Secrets to WS & CIO newsletter 0.4025 ounces of gold= USD $450.00
Therefore the bold prices listed above in terms of gold will become our standard prices from April, 2009 forward, though we will continue to price our services in the US dollar equivalent of the constant gold amounts. For example, in April, 2009, our CIO newsletter will no longer be USD $450 but half an ounce of gold, and the US dollar amounts for our services listed on our homepage will appropriately reflect this pricing change to the gold standard. In June, 2009, the price of our CIO newsletter will still be the US dollar equivalent of half an ounce of gold, and in September, 2009, the price of our CIO newsletter will still be the US dollar equivalent of half an ounce of gold. The same holds true for the prices of our other services. For a detailed explanation of how this pricing system will work, please read the section below "How We Determine the Prices of Our Services Based Upon the Gold Standard".
The Rationale Behind Our Pricing Scheme
Gold, just like the world’s major currencies, is a form of currency. If it were not, there would be no reason all Central Banks hold gold as part of their currency reserves. Therefore, we are merely pegging the prices of our services to a gold standard. Though you will see our prices adjusted on the first of every month in US dollars, our price in gold will actually never be changing unless we change the listed price of our services in terms of gold. Thus, pricing our services in gold is a similar decision to pricing our services in Pound Sterling were our company based in the United Kingdom or in Euros if we were based in Germany. Having to pay a different amount for our services in Australian dollars or Canadian dollars because the exchange rate to gold has changed is no different than having to pay a different amount of Australian or Canadian dollars for our services because the exchange rate of these currencies to the Euro had changed.
Pricing our services based upon a gold standard illustrates our willingness to put “our money where our mouth is” during this monetary crisis in the sense that if gold declines, our services will also become cheaper. We believe that gold is a true currency; thus it is logical to tie the price our services to a form of money that we consider sound versus currencies like the US dollar, the Pound Sterling, or the Euro, that we consider to be unsound.
How We Determine the Prices of Our Services Based Upon the Gold Standard
The price that will be re-set every month for our services will be based upon the average price of gold in the New York COMEX markets for the previous month. For example, on June 1st, if the average price of gold in May was $800 per fine troy ounce, then the price of our CIO investment newsletter, at ½ ounce of gold, will actually drop from USD $450 to USD $400 per an annual subscription; our Platinum Membership, at 7.00 ounces of gold, will drop from USD $6,300 to USD $5,600 per annual subscription, and so on. We will reset our prices in dollar terms on a monthly basis, on the first of every month, and this will remain the price of this service from the first to the last day of this month. However, in gold terms, the prices of our services will not be changing.
In fact, since we started pricing our services on a "gold standard" as of March 2009, the rolling 30-day price of gold indeed dropped the following month in April, 2009 and consequently, so did the prices of our services. However, despite the fact that we dropped the prices of our services in the second month after we decided to tie all of our services to a gold standard, we believe that gold is a true currency; thus it is logical to tie the price of our services to a form of money that we consider sound versus currencies like the US dollar, the Pound Sterling, or the Euro, that we consider to be unsound.
Conversely, if the price of gold in US dollars climbs higher to an average price of $1,000 per fine troy ounce in the prior month, then the price of our annual CIO investment newsletter subscription will re-adjust to USD $500; and the Platinum Membership cost would adjust upwards to USD $7,000; and so on. If you are a new client of ours, and you decide to purchase one of our services on the 2-payment schedule instead of the upfront one-time payment, please note that the price of your second payment in US dollar terms will likely be different for your second payment after six months, though the price in terms of gold will not change. For example, if you were to purchase our Platinum Membership at two semi-annual payments of 3.67 ounces of gold when the price of gold for the prior month was $900 an ounce then your first payment in US dollar terms would be $3,300 dollars. However, if six-months later, when your second payment is due, gold had traded at $1,000 an ounce in the prior month, then your second payment would be $3,670 dollars, NOT $3,300 dollars. Conversely, if the price of gold had dropped to $800 the prior month, your second payment would be $2,930 dollars, NOT $3,300 dollars. With any of the two semi-annual payment options, the second payment will ALWAYS be charged 6-months after the first payment, so there is no option to lock-in second payment prices at an earlier gold conversion rate with this payment plan.
The price of our services will never waver in terms of ounces of gold for the remainder of 2009 and likely for most of 2010. Our prices will only change because the exchange rate of the US dollar per ounce of gold is changing. This is a standard that we foresee maintaining at least for the remainder of 2009 and throughout 2010. Of course, we retain the right to raise the price of our services in ounces of gold, but this is not something that we would do in direct response to a falling gold price. Thus, if the price of gold were to plummet to an average price of $600 an ounce in May, though this drop in the price of gold does not serve our bottom line, we would still indeed, based upon our gold standard, offer our CIO investment newsletter for just $300 per annual subscription and our Platinum Membership at a huge US dollar discount at $4,200 per annual subscription.
Note to our Current Members:
This change in our pricing scheme to fix our prices to a gold standard should not concern you as we will always position our services to the best of our abilities to ensure that you profit from this monetary crisis. Therefore if the prices of our services in US dollars should rise considerably given our gold standard, you should find yourself well positioned in your investments such that the rise in your investment holdings should more than compensate for any increase in the US dollar price of our services. Furthermore, we are currently granting all current members the option to lock in renewal prices up to three months prior to your current membership expiration date.
For example, if you have a membership that is expiring on March 3, 2010, you may renew your service at any time on or after, but NOT prior, to December 3, 2009 at the current stated prices at the time. Thus, if your current membership expires on March 3, 2010, and you chose to renew your membership in January of 2010, your renewed membership would still expire one year from March 3, 2010, and not from the time you chose to lock-in your renewal price. All members may check the expiration date of their current services by clicking on the “Subscribe Info” tab in the right hand column on the page that appears immediately after logging in to our website.