Craigslist calls itself a non-profit website. Is it? This is a picture of how much CraigsList earns: 2003 - us $ 7 million 2007 - us $ 55 million 2008 - us $ 81 million CraigsList has 25 employees. Considering all of them have to get paid, does all that money required to pay the employees? Apparently it seems to come down to the point "we are non-profit, but we really are not".
Quote from Wikipedia on Craigslist: So it seems that it's a normal company, running for profit, albeit with a foundation by its side..
all the non-profit organizations need money to operate. some run their own business but have a not for profit status with IRS (or which ever based on the country they operate in) and others depend on donations (churches, schools, other community or charity organizations). craigslist does have a 501(c)3 status with IRS so they ARE nonprofit by the books. and i'm sure IRS monitors the status and their books very closely.
all that money probably for server costs admin etc donating to charit, the lsit goes on. It's probably the most known classified site in the world!
ok craigslist makes a lot of money but webcosmo making a lot of money doesn't make one a non-profit...it depends on what they do with the money they raise. if they keep it for themselves (ie keep the profit) then your right they aren't non-profit. if they spend on money on charity programs...they are a non-profit. by only posting how much they have raised and not where the money is going, no one can honesty say if this fishy or not.
Given the format of craigslist and the way they operate, I get the impression, knowing that they are for-profit, doesn't really make me think they're really fishy.
Craig's list is the most disorganised piece of crap I've ever seen and I'll stick to the more modern ways of marketing etc.
i was under the impression that they are non profit. based on your comment and reference, i did a little dig up and here's what my findings: craigslist.org IS a site for profit. craigslist.org itself is not a nonprofit site. however, "In 2001, the company started the Craigslist Foundation, a § 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that helps emerging nonprofit organizations get established, gain visibility, attract the attention of potential donors, and develop the skills and knowledge required for long-term success." source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craigslist so it appears that most are confused with craigslist.org and craigslist foundation which are 2 different entities.
They are definitely not a non-profit. They are a corporation that makes millions per year. They probably have a non-profit as well, but the classified ad company is definitely a corporation.