A short while ago, Qzjul said he'd think about a sponsored mode/option.

Here's a few ideas to how this can be made viable (there are a few holes, that will ofcourse need to be plugged before implementing)

Howabout VIP days as a payment option ? You can buy x number of VIP days for y amount of dollars (make 'em cheap enough that people will want them)

Offer VIP benefits like:
Option to display banner as signarure in forum
A little star next to your name in forums AND in games with your linked account
Automatic collection of bonus points (or even doubling them)
Access to a VIP only forum
Extra daily bonus acres (or cash or turns or something else)
Lower salestax, expenses etc.
In alliance, it'd even be possible to limit the ability to create a clan to people who have VIP days.

I'm sure more options could be thought of if we want to.

Now here's the kicker: Not everyone wants to PAY for these VIP days, but everyone wants 'em, so make one of the servers (alliance or primary for instance) able to trade these days on a market for ingame cash (or donatable like a sort of FA) This way people with no cash can buy/get them from people who do have cash to buy 'em.

extra daily bonuses and lower taxes etc won't get thru since that would mean non-vip couldn't compete with vip.

I have to agree that no matter the outcome, it'd be pretty cool if you could sell these on the market. That is, of course, with a strict (and very low) limit on how often you can purchase, or perhaps sell, them.

Not that the idea isn't very well thought out, but I just don't like anything in this construct having seen and played on the limited server of old. People who don't pay will get more turned off and it is very hard to get old vets to return as is. This could be viable with new marketing and players but as is I think it is just a turn off.

Personally, I dont think that it's wrong to give paying customers something for their money.
And the idea of being able to trade the VIP mode should offset the unwillingness of others to buy the days, as they can trade them instead and get the same bonus (but ideally the gains should be so small that its not what tips the scale).

Not having played the limited server ever, I dont know what that deal is, but yes, this game has a lot of swingdoor activity, and very few people who hang on for longer periods of time. This is however, quite normal for most games, as they're often populated by people, the majority of whom have this little weird thing called "a life" ;) So while more players are welcome, I doubt the percentage of "returning customers" will increase no matter what we do.
I also doubt a payment option that is not required to play, that can possibly be bought with ingame funds, and that has very little effect on your result would deter anyone from beginning to play anyway (bottomfeeding is a MUCH bigger deterant in that regard).

I admit that a balance needs to be struck, to ensure that the non-paying community still plays, but that is merely a question of offering the right incentives in the package.

From experience, however, I know that if transferable bonuses (such as this is) are incentivised enough that they become valued, some players will, in local terms: stock them in one set to get a boost in the next one (essentially transfering NW from one set to the next). This is also why I suggest that only ONE server can trade them. But ofcourse people will play the numbers. This IS after all a numbers game.

I'd pay a dollar for several billion extra bushels...

I don't want to add any bonuses that would make an unfair advantage for paying players; perks yes, but ingame advantages not so much; things like auto-bonus rather than having to click & captcha; potentially auto-sms; a patron forum; a special status...

and any other ideas you can think of that wouldn't alter ingame play much... (though i'd be open to more high-level tools for FFA with payment heh)