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0 pointsdexterdog10y ago0 comments

But it's still micropayments. They've done a good job of aggregating some quality content, but it's still pay per click to the consumer.

0 comments

vanderZwan10y ago

... with a one-click refund if you don't like the article.

In regular use, you don't go through the process of paying - opening an article automatically pays the price, so it's very easy to do. However, you can always get a refund.

It's a tiny detail, but it changes the whole flow. A nice side-effect is that clickbait is punished very harshly by the customers.

chinathrow10y ago

The one-click refund isn't available after like 10 tries.

vanderZwan10y ago

You don't see this?

http://i.imgur.com/5vYGsUg.png

(turns out you have two more clicks: there's one "please tell us why, for statistical purposes" multiple choice question followed by a confirmation - I think that's fair since it will greatly reduce abuse.)

gedrap10y ago

I'd assume it's to keep things easier, especially for a young company. It should be much easier to deal with publishers when you can agree on cost per view, rather than trying to work out some magic subscriptions share model, like the one used by spotify, which is pretty hard to do and keep everyone happy.

But that's just an educated guess :)

dexterdogOP10y ago

I agree, but that variable cost is what makes it variable to the consumer which is generally not accepted. Putting a hurdle before a click to view an article generally destroys your readership.

gedrap10y ago

It's totally true for things like spotify, where you can easily stream thousands of songs just in the background every month. Imagine how silly it would be if you had to make sure that spotify is closed when you leave your computer on for some time :)

However, consuming written content is different. It's much more involved, conscious action. So I am not sure if it is really much worse for the user.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

0 comments

vanderZwan10y ago

... with a one-click refund if you don't like the article.

In regular use, you don't go through the process of paying - opening an article automatically pays the price, so it's very easy to do. However, you can always get a refund.

It's a tiny detail, but it changes the whole flow. A nice side-effect is that clickbait is punished very harshly by the customers.

chinathrow10y ago

The one-click refund isn't available after like 10 tries.

vanderZwan10y ago

You don't see this?

http://i.imgur.com/5vYGsUg.png

gedrap10y ago

But that's just an educated guess :)

dexterdogOP10y ago

I agree, but that variable cost is what makes it variable to the consumer which is generally not accepted. Putting a hurdle before a click to view an article generally destroys your readership.

gedrap10y ago

However, consuming written content is different. It's much more involved, conscious action. So I am not sure if it is really much worse for the user.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse