Wolf, is hakaras hatov an obligation? Does it apply here? I think it’s a very valid question, and I don’t know why you pretty much dismissed it.
I don’t believe hakaros hatov to be an issue here, because they did not build the site for you as a favor or as an altrusitic endeavor to aid the community. It’s a business, plain and simple. You owe it no more hakaras hatov than you owe the electric company, the book printer, the supermarket owner or your internet provider.
The Wolf