“OH YEAH, THEY’LL PAY. THEY KNOW WHAT’S GOOD FOR THEM. THEY’LL PAY.”

The above constitutes a typical comment received during a months-long survey of regular Gang Land readers as to whether or not this column should become pay-per-view, subscription only.

Several readers cautioned that certain savvy wiseguy types will quickly figure out how to hack-in to the site, since getting something for nothing is a Gang Land creed.

Other law-enforcement readers threatened possible RICO action if we took away their weekly free ride.

Well, agents and mobsters alike, take your best shot.

On June 19, 2008, ganglandnews.com ended its 12 year run as a free web site.

While we had certain regrets making this move, we did so in pursuit of the one Gang Land trait shared on both sides of the law: Always get paid.

In order to keep this web site financially viable, readers will henceforth have to help pay the freight. Advertising revenue just doesn’t cut it. Alas, the June 19 column was the last free column on the site.

Since 1996, Gang Land had been a free web site. Even during the five years that the weekly column appeared in the New York Sun newspaper, it was still free here at ganglandnews.com. But our affiliation with The Sun – and the revenue that came along with it – ended in October, 2007.

For the website to survive, you, the reader, will have to help keep it afloat. There is no other way that does not compromise, or diminish the product.

The Gang Land-gets-paid campaign began in earnest with the June 26, 2008 column, “The FBI's Mr. Big Strikes Again." To read that column, and all future columns, you must be a paid subscriber. The same goes for any of the more than 12 years’ worth of previous online columns, or other featured stories on the site. To access them you likewise must become a paid subscriber.
 
The cost? A minimum monthly subscription is $5. That may still be a bit more than a gallon of gas where you live, but it’s probably less than what you paid for that cigar.

We also offer a special semi-annual pass at $25; you pay for five months, you get one month free. Nice huh?

And a yearly subscription goes for $45.00; you pay for nine months, and get three months free. It doesn’t get better than that.

In addition to the weekly column, all paid up subscribers will have access to the entire site, which includes the archives, and all other features. That’s for the most comprehensive collection of wiseguy lore and history available anywhere.

Subscribers will be identified by email address and a unique username and password chosen by the subscriber. Also, from the get-go, subscribers will receive special email notices about breaking news as soon as Gang Land learns of it.

Gang Land's preferred payment method is credit card. (But because of numerous requests, we are now accepting checks and money orders. Those details are below.) Gang Land accepts all major credit cards. Your subscription will begin immediately after your payment is processed through our secure server. On our honor, there will be no criminal background checks! It should take less than three minutes. Once your payment is received, you’re ready to go.  

Signing up is simple, similar to other subscription websites. And of course, Gang Land will never share your personal information with any other entity – on any side of the law.

As stated above, credit card payments are preferred. But if you are willing to pay $60 for a year's subscription, send a check or money order payable to Jerry Capeci to Jerry Capeci, P.O. Box 863, Long Beach, NY 11561. Also enclose a valid email address so we can send you a username and password. You will be stuck with the username, but once you log in to the site, you should change the password to one that you prefer. Please TYPE or PRINT the email address CLEARLY or we won't be able to get a username and password to you. There are no refunds.

For those who won’t be subscribing – for whatever reason – we hope you have enjoyed your visits here over the years, and we thank you for the many yeas and nays that you imparted to us since we took the column online in September, 1996. For the rest of you, we’ll be back at you next week, with, as it states at the top of this website, “real stuff about organized crime.”