Helium.com Account Closed, Content and Earnings Confiscated Internet

I am a professional writer who has written for Helium.com since May of 2007. On Thanksgiving Day of 2009, I received an email message claiming that some of the links within my Helium articles were in violation of the Helium rules. I had never recieved any messages regarding these links before. The links were specifically to relevant content which I had created on other websites. Some of the links were to craft templates and images on other websites. I had included these image links because Helium.com does not accept images for upload.

I was ordered, on a national holiday, to remove the links which were perportedly in violation of Helium's rules. Furthermore, one email I received threatened that further promotion could result in full account review, content removal or other administrative actions. The emails further claimed that the violation was "self-promotion." I searched Helium site, and could not find any specific rule against "self-promotion," nor any clear policies regarding linking. Despite the fact that nobody in his right mind could expect me to remove such content on a holiday weekend, I spent a good deal of time on Thanksgiving Day removing the links from my articles. Nevertheless, on Monday morning of the next week, I could not log into my account on Helium.com. I contacted Helium regarding the problem, and recieved a rude message in response stating that my account had been suspended for "self-promotion" and that due my status as a long time member on the site and my having been a former site steward, Helium believed that I knew that "self-promotion" was not allowed. This, despite the fact that there is no clear rule prohibiting "self-promotion" nor any clear definition of what constitutes "self-promotion" on the site.

Although this email stated that Helium would later decide whether or not to reinstate my account, I have recieved no further communication from the site over the last two months. I am still unable to log into my account, and have not been paid for content submitted or revenues earned during the months from October through today. My content is published on the Helium website, and I have not paid for any of it.

Based upon the experience I have had and the experiences of others which I have read about, I must strongly discourage others from signing up for or writing for the Helium.com site. I am happy to receive emails from other people who feel that they have been victimized by Helium.com. Thank you.