Thursday, January 27, 2011
Would You Pay for it?
You are reading an article on the internet that for some reason is just a bit more intriguing than all the others you've read that day. At the bottom of the article, you find a button to click and pay ten cents to support the author. If it really were as easy as clicking that button, would you do it? Companies are beginning to emerge under the assumption that internet users want some way of giving back to the authors of the content they already use. Flattr is one of those companies. Started in 2010, it already boasts a user base of 70,000, and wants 1,000,000 by the end of the year. A goal this high seems to be quite lofty considering that the two companies using the model that came before have struggled to stay afloat (One of which has listed that the company is for sale on the home page). Flattr has a slightly different model than its predecessors in that it asks for a flat rate every month from its users and distributes money evenly between clicks, but will this be enough to differentiate itself? Most likely not, but only time will tell if users find the concept appealing enough to subscribe.
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Its hard to compete with Paypal's 'donate' buttons isn't it. That is a market much better suited to someone who is not worried about financial safety. Good luck to Flattr though, I think it's a good idea.
ReplyDeleteGiven the option to read an article for free, I honestly probably wouldn't pay anything for the article. I guess I'm more of a get as much as you can for as cheap as you can kind of guy (for better or for worse.) However, that's not to say this type of business model will be unsuccessful, because there are plenty out there that probably would pay.
ReplyDeleteI share the same thoughts as Travis. If an article is given to me for free, I would not feel any desire to pay for it. There does not seem to be a way that this would take off.
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