> A major reason paying for content doesn't work very well yet is that it's not practical to charge small amounts. The cost and hassle of electronic transactions makes it impractical to charge less than a fairly high subscription rate.
> But within a year the mechanisms will be in place that allow content providers to charge just a cent or a few cents for information. If you decide to visit a page that costs a nickel, you won't be writing a check or getting a bill in the mail for a nickel. You'll just click on what you want, knowing you'll be charged a nickel on an aggregated basis.
> This technology will liberate publishers to charge small amounts of money, in the hope of attracting wide audiences.
> Those who succeed will propel the Internet forward as a marketplace of ideas, experiences, and products-a marketplace of content.
> But within a year the mechanisms will be in place that allow content providers to charge just a cent or a few cents for information. If you decide to visit a page that costs a nickel, you won't be writing a check or getting a bill in the mail for a nickel. You'll just click on what you want, knowing you'll be charged a nickel on an aggregated basis.
> This technology will liberate publishers to charge small amounts of money, in the hope of attracting wide audiences.
> Those who succeed will propel the Internet forward as a marketplace of ideas, experiences, and products-a marketplace of content.
I wonder what happened to the future of 1996..