Pyramid scheme + backup service


BehindMLM first reviewed Bought Again up again in 2015.

The MLM firm is a part of International Digital Alternatives (GVO), owned by Joel Therien.

Unsure how Bought Backup has gone all through the years however just lately there’s been an uptick within the enterprise.

SimilarWeb tracked a rise in Bought Backup web site visitors, from ~53,400 in June to ~121,900 in August. Most of this visitors is coming from the Netherlands (49%), UK (10%), Australia (10%) and Canada (9%).

Bought Backup’s revitalization prompted a number of readers to succeed in out and request an up to date assessment.

Immediately we revisit Go Backup to see the place the MLM alternative is at eight years later.

The Firm

Bought Backup fails to supply possession or govt data on its web site.

Within the footer of Bought Backup’s web site International Digital Alternatives is talked about, together with a Texas company handle.

Joel Therein (proper) does seem in an embedded (and for some purpose photoshopped) Bought Backup advertising video, however that is straightforward to overlook.

Clearly Bought Backup isn’t making an attempt to cover its affiliation with GVO. Nonetheless, why Bought Backup doesn’t present customers with possession and govt data is unclear.

Bought Backup’s Merchandise

Bought Backup markets a month-to-month subscription that gives desktop and cell app cloud backup providers.

  • $8.99 a month for a 1 TB private backup plan
  • $9.97 a month for a 6 TB Household backup plan (6 accounts)

Bought Backup claims their cloud backup service is safe as a result of it’s “encrypted with navy grade encryption”.

Bought Backup’s Compensation Plan

Bought Backup’s compensation plan combines recruitment and gross sales of the backup subscription.

Recruitment Commissions

Each Bought Backup affiliate pays $9.97 a month.

Bought Backup makes use of this payment to pay recruitment commissions through a “two by infinity” matrix.

Every week the matrix is stuffed chronologically primarily based on when a Bought Backup affiliate joined.

Commissions are paid per place within the matrix. Particular recruitment fee quantities will not be disclosed.

Subscription Commissions

Subscription commissions are paid on backup service subscriptions offered to retail clients and recruited associates.

Bought Backup pays subscription commissions through a unilevel compensation construction.

A unilevel compensation construction locations an affiliate on the high of a unilevel crew, with each personally recruited affiliate positioned immediately beneath them (stage 1):

If any stage 1 associates recruit new associates, they’re positioned on stage 2 of the unique affiliate’s unilevel crew.

If any stage 2 associates recruit new associates, they’re positioned on stage 3 and so forth and so forth down a theoretical infinite variety of ranges.

With respect to depth, Bought Backup solely pays on the deepest leg (the leg with essentially the most ranges of recruitment).

  • a 200% fee is paid on the primary month of personally referred subscription enrolments
  • 25% is paid every month thereafter on personally referred subscription enrolments
  • 25% is paid per subscription enrolment on the deepest unilevel crew leg (known as the “payline”)

Be aware that Bought Backup doesn’t specify what the above percentages correspond to in greenback quantities.

Matching Bonus

Bought Backup pays a 25% Matching Bonus on subscription commissions earned by personally recruited associates, in addition to an affiliate’s deepest unilevel leg (payline).

Becoming a member of Bought Backup

Bought Backup affiliate membership is $9.97 a month.

Bought Backup Conclusion

In 2015 Bought Backup had no retail providing, everybody was an affiliate. This was an apparent pyramid recruitment mannequin.

In 2023 Bought Backup has separated the MLM alternative from its backup subscription service. It is a step in the precise route.

Sadly utilizing affiliate membership charges to pay commissions leaves us again at sq. one.

It’s doable to affix Bought Backup as an affiliate for $9.97 a month, recruit others who do the identical and earn commissions.

It is a pyramid scheme enterprise mannequin.

Don’t need to miss out? The quicker you improve, the higher place you’ll safe within the matrix.

Retail backup subscription quotas would get rid of pyramid issues however Bought Backup doesn’t have these.

A secondary company-wide pyramid may additionally exist if the vast majority of Bought Backup backup subscriptions are held by associates. This might counsel Bought Backup’s backup service will not be retail viable.

To independently consider this I ran a fast seek for “cloud backup service”. Right here’s what got here up (costs correct at time of publication however topic to alter):

  • Backblaze – limitless backups for $7 a month
  • Carbonite – limitless backups for $7.99 a month
  • iDrive – 5TB for $69.95 first yr ($5.82 a month) after which $99.50 yearly ($8.29 a month)

One space Bought Backup is best is that it covers six computer systems for $9.97 a month. Information clever nonetheless Bought Backup’s 1 TB per gadget is relatively fairly unhealthy.

Bought Backup’s single gadget $8.99 subscription is totally not retail viable. I get the sense it’s simply there to upsell folks to $9.97 a month.

As with our unique assessment, a fast pyramid check you are able to do as a potential Bought Backup affiliate is ask your upline what number of energetic retail subscriptions they’ve.

Weigh that towards their energetic recruited associates (you’re taking a look at a minimal 50/50 greenback cut up in funds every month), and go from there.

Between Bought Backup’s questionable retail viability and affiliate membership payment pyramid scheme, eight years later and I’m nonetheless not seeing a lot to love right here.