Newspapers may soon be rejoicing – it’s possible that Google may be on the way to solving their most pressing concern: a lack of pay model for online news.
While Google’s relationship with the newspaper industry has been tenuous, to say the least, their new proposal may pave the way for much less strained ties. The platform Google is proposing would be one of micropayments, wherein users would pay a monthly subscription fee to access a block of varied news content sites. This could allow news websites, which have been struggling for the past few years, to finally make some money from their online content.
Google’s hope is that the micropayment system it is proposing will be available within the next year. The search giant explains that the system need not mean web surfers will be reaching deep into their pockets:” The idea is to allow viable payments of a penny to several dollars by aggregating purchases across merchants and over time. “
This proposal for a new way to do online news comes in light of the Newspaper Association of America’s request for paid-content proposals
Google explained that an open web need not mean a free web. This new, paid-for web, would be attached to the Google Checkout, a payment system to rival Paypal. It is currently equipped to handle subscription payments for news sites, but Google is still working to make it more relevant for news and media companies.
The risk of non-payment would be, explains Google, mitigated by the assignment of credit limits based on past purchasing behavior and having credit card instruments available for those with higher credit limits. They also said they would use their own risk engines to track abuse or fraud.
As for the proposed business model, Google suggested it would share revenue through the micropayment system in a similar method to the iTunes App Store, and its Android Market. In both of these systems, Google takes a 30 percent cut.
Google’s vision for this premium content ecosystem includes five key points, combining Google’s e-commerce, search and advertising platforms:
1. Single sign-on capability for users to access online content and manager their subscriptions
2. Ability for publishers to combine subscriptions from different titles for one set price
3. Ability to create multiple payment options and easily include or exclude content from behind a paywall
4. Multiple search tiers including: snippets with only a subscription label, access to preview pages, and first-click-free access
5. New advertising system that offers highly relevant ads to users
However, news sites ought not get overly excited. Google qualifies that it does not expect the micropayments will catch on widely for buying online content.
Darn, just when we thought we were getting somewhere…
Kaila Krayewski is a freelance journalist with a passion for all things internet. Having worked for nearly two years as the public relations manager for an internation search engine optimization company, and publishing hundreds of articles (how-to, informational, and otherwise) on SEO, she knows a thing or two about the field. Furthermore, having just started up her own website blondetraveler.com, she is doing her best to keep one step ahead of the search engines in order to keep the traffic flowing.
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