1911 By Subscription.

[spiderboy]

Hidden away on their blog yesterday they posted that they are “almost ready” to announce that it is available via subscription but first they have to sort out some technical issues. By insinuation it will not be included in the FindMyPast subscription.
http://blog.1911census.co.uk/2009/08/a-treat-for-tennyson-lovers/#comments
Perhaps not too much longer to wait then? 

[kerryb]

I have to say I am a little, disturbed, peeved etc that the suggestion is it will be another subscription rather than just added into the current sub!    Ever get the feeling you are being squeezed for every penny you have 

Kerry

[spiderboy]

Not that it helps or makes it any easier but in fairness to them I think that all along it was suggested that extra payment would be required.

[smudwhisk]

If FindMyPast are going to charge extra for access on top of a normal subscription, I shall be waiting until it appears on other sites.   From what I remember, they only have exclusivity to it for a maximum of 6 months after all the images are released.  Then other companies can purchase copies of the images and index them themselves (or something like that if memory serves me correctly).  The explorer subscription at £90 for a year is a little expensive for what is on the site, albeit that I do use the passenger lists and the NBI a reasonable amount.  Other than that, I don't tend to use the census on the site, only if I can't find them on ancestry.  I would imagine FindMyPast have made more than enough to cover their costs and a bit on top.  I don't personally remember them saying it would be a bolt-on to existing subscriptions .. less hope not.  Perhaps they have to sort out a separate 1911 only subscription for people who don't want access to the rest of their site.

Nicola

[les_looking]

pretty sure that the 1911 census is not going to be available elswhere until at least 2011,
as FindMyPast have a contract until then,
then i assume National Archives will sell the images to whoever else are interested, as spiderboy states i think it has always been common knowledge that access will be an extra subscription on top of any current membership to FindMyPast,
i subscibe to both FindMyPast and Ancestery so not thrilled about paying more but as i say i have always known
that would be the case.
If you search the discussions on this site going back to last year you will see that people have always known it would be extra.
Personally i am a realist and know they have paid good money for the 1911, also we have it 2 years ahead of expected release date, they are damned if they do and damned if they don't, what kind of stink
will the people who have been paying for images kick up if they released it with no extra cost?
without knowing what they ACTUALLY paid for it and what returns they have had....

As i say just my personal opinion, i have been chuffed with the info i have gained and i have bought a LOT of images, i compare it to £7 for a BMD certificate and have to wait up to a week, i maybe in the minority but i look at it that i have this info 2 years ahead of time, apart from the cost the roll out of the 1911 compared to the 1901 has been IN MY opinion excellent.

[Necromancer]

The FindMyPast 'exclusivity' and dates bandied around by the SoG are seemingly urban myths ...

pretty sure that the 1911 census is not going to be available elswhere until at least 2011,
as FindMyPast have a contract until then

If you look at this FOI request, the Nat Archives spokesperson clearly states that they dont 'do exlusive' ...

http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/contract_with_find_my_past_limit

so hopefully, fairly soon RC will review their position on 'Lookups' and the 1911 will be treated the same as the other census ?

[MarthaJane]

I use Ancestry, not FindMyPast and would willingly pay a subscription just for the 1911 census.

I only used the 1911 site for the first time yesterday and bought the minimum amount of credits, £6.95.  I was very surprised that the search results did not list place of birth as Ancestry do which (when dealing with a common name) enhances the possibility of choosing the right person.

I did eventually find the family by searching for the younger children and seeing if names and dobs were in the same district.  Unfortunately the Father and the daughter (my Grandma) were not listed.  With a common name I soon got through my credits without finding her.  As she was 18 at the time it is possible she was in service, which could be anywhere.  So I do hope for a subscription service to be announced.

[les_looking]

i would be very surprised if FindMyPast when bidding did not have some time frame in place,
if not i would question their business capabilities lol
the National Archives already offer free access to the 1911 census so exclusive it aint, i would also THINK that FindMyPast would get any cut of the selling on to cover their costs of scanning etc, maybe way off the mark but cannot see them scanning the census for others then to bid at a lower cost than they paid,
the more sites that have the census the better and cheaper it will become, but if you think about it i wouldn't think FindMyPast are going to offer the census at a new subscription rate or as they have stated existing members will benefit,
if they know that other sites are going to also have the census anytime soon,
would you subscribe to a new subscription if you knew Ancestery etc were going to have the 1911 soon?
i do hope i am wrong

there is also maybe another scenario, that IF anytime soon Ancestery etc have the census they will also "up" their prices,
as i say i can't see FindMyPast rolling out a new subscription if they know others will soon also have the 1911

[MarthaJane]

In case anyone is unware National Archives have started rolling out the 1911 Census free at 7 centres in the UK.  This will be for about a year, maybe less if demand is high.  Unfortunately I cannot get to any of them.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/news/stories/337.htm

Also, regarding Ancestry, I did not know that it can be accessed free from any public library.