Template:Wikia.com / Fandom.com: Difference between revisions

{{Wiki farm <!--see 'Template:Wiki farm' for full detail and hidden help advice-->

'''<big>Wikia</big>''', currently branded as '''<big>Fandom</big>''', and originally known as '''<big>Wikicities</big>''' (until 27 March 2006), is a {{tag|Wiki farm|collection}} of over 250,000<ref name=About>[https://about.fandom.com/about Fandom {{!}} About Us]; ''about.Fandom.com''; Fandom, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}; accessed 19 December 2022.</ref> [[wiki]] sites.  Known as a '[[wiki farm]]', it is owned by its parent company '''[[WikiaSite:Wikia, Inc.|Wikia, Inc.]]'''<ref name=Terms>[https://www.Fandom.com/terms-of-use Terms of Use | Fandom]; ''Community.Fandom.com'' (originally: ''Community.Wikia.com''); Fandom, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}} (originally: Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}); dated 24 May 2022; accessed 19 December 2022.</ref>  [[:Category:Wikicities|Wikicities]] was founded 18 October {{tag|Founded in 2004|2004}} by [[:Category:American|American]] internet entrepreneur [[Jimmy Wales|Jimmy 'Jimbo' Wales]] (who had previously founded [[:Category:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]]), and his then [[:Category:British|British]] business partner [[Angela Beesley Starling]] (now known as Angela Starling).<ref name=About/>  Its original tagline was ''"Create. Collaborate. Be Original."''  In 2006, [[WikiaSite:User:Gil|Gil Penchina]] became the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and hoped to take Wikia to a new level as he did with [[:Category:eBay|eBay]].  In late 2011, [[Craig L. Palmer]] was appointed as new Wikia CEO.<ref>[[WikiaSite:Forum:Craig Palmer, new CEO of Wikia|Craig Palmer, new CEO of Wikia]]; ''Community.Fandom.com'' (originally: ''Community.Wikia.com''); Fandom, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}} (originally: Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}); date 20 October 2011; accessed 19 December 2022.</ref>  In late 2016, the entire Wikia site was rebranded from 'Wikia' to 'Fandom',<ref>[[WikiaSite:User_blog:Craiglpalmer/Wikia_is_now_Fandom_powered_by_Wikia|User blog:Craiglpalmer / Wikia is now Fandom powered by Wikia]]; ''Community.Fandom.com'' (originally: ''Community.Wikia.com''); Fandom, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}} (originally: Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}); dated 26 September 2016; accessed 19 December 2022.</ref> and also launched the non-profit sister site [https://wikia.org Wikia.org].  As of October 2021, the current Fandom CEO is [[Perkins Miller]].<ref name=About/>

'''<big>Wikia, Inc.</big>''', now '''<big>Fandom, Inc.</big>''', is a {{tag|Wiki company|company}} registered and {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated}} in the {{tag|Delaware|State of Delaware}}, [[:Category:United States of America|United States of America]] (corporate number C2935209).  Its registered office is at 130 Sutter Street, 4th Floor, {{tag|San Francisco|San Francisco County}}, [[:Category:California|State of California]] 94104, United States of America.<ref name=Terms/>

[[Wikia|Wikia.com]] (and now Fandom.com) uses a heavily modified and customized creation of the {{tag|MediaWiki}} {{tag|Wiki engine|wiki engine}} software, to the point of making it unique.  It is visually different from conventional MediaWiki sites (such as [[:Category:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]]), in that it has its own exclusive {{tag|custom skin}}, and most notably, is embedded with a range and variety of graphic and dynamic {{tag|Advertising|advertisements}}.  The fundamental business model of Wikia / Fandom is the offering of {{tag|Free MediaWiki wiki farm|free hosting}} for an individual or [[wiki community]] to build a free content [[WhatIsWiki|wiki]]-based website, on virtually any [[:Category:Wiki Topic|subject]].  New wikis can be created instantly at https://www.Wikia.com/Special:CreateNewWiki.  Hosting of wiki, and 24&nbsp;hour customer support is free, in return for advertising placed on the pages; but [[editor]]s and [[user]]s have little say over the advertisements (both content and placement) their wiki site displays.  Support, on both the technical and community aspects of running a wiki community, is provided at [[Wikia Community Central]], now known as Fandom Community Central (or one of its related [[Template:Wikia Community Central|other]] [[:Category:Wiki language|language]] Community wikis).

From its creation in {{tag|Founded in 2004|2004}}, all wiki sites hosted on Wikia had unrestricted editing privileges for all [[editor]]s, known as '[[:Category:OpenEdit|open edit]]'.  This meant, that whilst Wikia welcomed [[user]]s to register for an account and create their own [[username]], anonymous folks were equally welcome and able to [[edit]] without the need to create an account and / or log-in.  As was the norm throughout the developing [[wikisphere]], individuals from this latter group became known as an [[IP editor]], due to them being identified by their [[IP address]] from the [[edit history]] of any wiki page they had edited.  This 'open edit' ethos continued as a fundamental basis until July 2013; when it was deemed that 'open edit' was not compliant with the 'Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998', commonly known as [http://coppa.org COPPA], which became effective 21 April 2000, and is overseen by the [https://www.ftc.gov Federal Trade Commission] (FTC).  As a result, in order to comply with COPPA, all new Wikia wikis were required to implement all users to register for an account before being able to edit, known as '[[:Category:LoginToEdit|log-in to edit]]'.  Those existing Wikia sites created before July 2013 are also required to convert to 'log-in to edit', thus effectively ending one of the founding wiki fundamentals of being 'open to all'.

The overwhelming vast majority of Wikia wiki sites are currently released under one primary [[:Category:Wiki license|wiki license]]: the {{tag|Wiki Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike|Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 3.0 Unported license}} (CC-BY-SA 3.0), as explained [[WikiaSite:Licensing|here]].  However, other licenses are available on Wikia; these include the [[:Category:Wiki Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial|Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial]] (CC-BY-NC), as used by [[Memory Alpha]], and the [[:Category:Wiki Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives|Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivative Works 3.0 unported]] (CC-BY-NC-ND 3.0) licenses.<ref name=Licensing>[http://www.wikia.com/Licensing Licensing {{!}} Fandom powered by Wikia]; ''Wikia.com''; Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}; accessed 25 September 2018.</ref>

Historically, when Wikia was founded (originally as [[:Category:Wikicities|Wikicities]]), it used the {{tag|Wiki GNU Free Documentation License|GNU Free Documentation License}} (GNU FDL or GFDL), just like [[:Category:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]] did.

Because all Wikia wiki sites are powered by {{tag|MediaWiki}} (albeit an outdated but extensively modified and customized version), they all have a <tt>/Special:Statistics</tt> page, which provides a standardized set of statistics specific to individual Wikia wiki sites.  These include page count statistics (content pages, all pages, and uploaded [[file]]s), edit statistics (total number of [[edit]]s since creation of specific wiki, and average edits per page), and [[user]] statistics; though it should be noted that the sources used in the third section are inconsistent.  Specifically, active users, [[administrator]]s, [[bureaucrat]]s, and bots correctly report data for their actual wiki; whereas the registered users output reports ALL registered users of ALL wiki sites throughout the entire Wikia project!

Unlike other {{tag|wiki farm}}s, Wikia will generally <u>not</u> [[:Category:Dead|close]] a wiki site if requested by the wikis' creator / [[founder]], and / or community of [[editor]]s.  Wikia prefer to maintain inactive and [[:Category:Goal abandoned|abandoned]] wiki sites in a [[:Category:Dormant|dormant]] state, and actively seek other [[Wikian]]s to '[[WikiaSite:Adoption:Requests|adopt]]' said wiki sites.  This will happen even when the original [[owner]](s) of a Wikia-hosted wiki site copy or '[[fork]]' their entire wiki and [[:Category:Ex-Wikia|re-host]] it; either independently, on another provider, or another [[wiki farm]].  Wikia wiki sites are only usually [[:Category:Dead|closed]] in exceptional circumstances, typically if the content or 'intent' of the wiki site breaches Wikias' [[WikiaSite:Closed Wikis Policy|terms of service]].<ref name=Community>[http://www.wikia.com/Community_Creation_Policy Community Creation Policy | Fandom powered by Wikia]; ''www.Wikia.com''; Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}; accessed 25 September 2018.</ref><ref name=ElectricSky97>[https://community.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:ElectricSky97/Most_Common_Reasons_Why_Your_Wiki_Gets_Closed User blog:ElectricSky97 | most common reasons why your wiki gets closed]; ''Community.Fandom.com''; Fandom, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}; dated 27 March 2020; accessed 19 December 2022.</ref>

Wikia offers {{tag|Free MediaWiki wiki farm|free hosting}} for a community to build a wiki website powered by a unique and heavily modified version of {{tag|MediaWiki}}, in return for the display of {{tag|Advertising|advertisements}}.  Registered [[user]]s have complained that they have little say over the placement, or the content of advertisements their wiki site displays.

When Wikia was originally founded in 2004 (as [[:Category:Wikicities|Wikicities]]), it used '{{tag|Monobook}}' as its default [[:Category:Skins|skin]]; identical to the [[:Category:MediaWiki skin|MediaWiki skin]] that [[:Category:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]] (and all other [[:Category:Wikimedia Foundation|Wikimedia Foundation]] wiki sites) then used at that time.  Subsequently, Wikia developed their own unique [[:Category:Custom skin|customised skins]], with an emphasis on accommodating their plethora of various in-wiki on-screen [[:Category:Advertising|adverts]].

===={{tag|Monaco}}====

The second default skin for Wikia wiki sites was called '{{tag|Monaco}}'; more colorful and customizable than their original default '{{tag|Monobook}}' skin.  While registered [[user]]s could previously view Wikia sites using the Monobook skin (by choosing it in their preferences), Wikia did not allow it to be chosen as a default skin for all wiki visitors, including [[IP editor]]s, which was frustrating for some long-standing Wikia communities.  [[:Category:Wikia staff|Wikia staff]] stated statistics showed that Monaco encouraged new registered users: by making [[edit]]ing easier.  However, many existing [[Wikian|Wikia members]] disagreed, and [[:Category:Ex-Wikia|left Wikia]] nonetheless.

===={{tag|Oasis}}====

Wikia subsequently introduced a third new '{{tag|Oasis}}' skin, which became widely unpopular with registered [[user]]s.  [[WikiaSite:community:User blog:MarioGalaxy2433g5/To the people complaining about the new look|To the people complaining about the new look]] documented user disdain.  This new Oasis skin became compulsory for all users.  Because of this change, many Wikia users [[:Category:Goal abandoned|have now left]], often [[:Category:Ex-Wikia|taking their wiki site]] and community members with them.  Oasis would later become the only skin available to users of all wiki sites on Wikia.  This caused heavy criticism, with some users criticising Fandom, then Wikia, for taking away their choices of skin.  This skin would later be retired and replaced with FandomDesktop.

===={{tag|Wikis with a mobile-view site|Mobile skin}}====

Wikia also supports a {{tag|Wikis with a mobile-view site|mobile-view}} specific skin, designed to be used on [[:Category:Smartphone|smartphones]] and / or [[:Category:Tablet|tablet]] computers.  This mobile version is automatically displayed when any Wikia wiki site is opened on such devices; although there is the option to also view the conventional desktop version using the then [[#Oasis|Oasis]] skin via a link at the bottom-centre (footer) of every page (and vice-versa to view mobile layout from a desktop version).  It should be noted that using this footer link effectively changes the default of all pages to the mobile view.  There is a way to view a mobile page as a 'one time option', by manually manipulating the wiki site URL with <tt>?useformat=mobile</tt> at the end of the URL, i.e., <tt>https://WikiSiteName.Fandom.com?useformat=mobile</tt>, with subsequent pages retaining the default desktop rendered display.

===={{tag|Venus|Venus}}====

In December 2014, Wikia introduced yet another skin called '{{tag|Venus|Venus}}', making it their fourth default, and causing even more controversy among [[user]]s.<ref>[http://community.wikia.com/wiki/User_blog:Rupert_Giles/Prototype_for_a_new_article_layout User blog:Rupert Giles / Prototype for a new article layout]; ''Community.Wikia.com''; Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}}; accessed 13 February 2019.</ref>

===={{tag|FandomDesktop}}====

In late 2016, at the same time as the global rebrand from Wikia to Fandom, its parent company, Wikia, {{Cambridge-Dictionary|incorporated|Inc.}} also launched a non-profit sister site [https://wikia.org Wikia.org].  '''Wikia.org''' also acted as a [[wiki farm]], and used the identical custom-modified MediaWiki software as Wikia.com.  However, the most obvious difference was a lack of [[:Category:Advertising|advertising]].  Wiki sites hosted on Wikia.org continued to use the {{tag|Wiki Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike|Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 3.0 Unported license}} (CC-BY-SA 3.0), so whilst Wikia, Inc. itself will not profit from hosting sites on Wikia.org, there is the potential to reuse content from Wikia.org on another external website (as is allowed under terms of the CC-BY-SA 3.0), and those external sites are able to monetise from said re-hosted Wikia.org content.

*[[GitHub:Wikia/app/tree/dev/extensions/wikia|List of Wikia app extensions (Wikia specific)]] — at GitHub.com

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[[Category:Founded in 2004]]<!--http://www.Wikia.com/Special:AncientPages, seems like they fiddled the stats!-->