

Fame vs. Fortune: Micropayments and Free Content - mark-t
http://www.shirky.com/writings/fame_vs_fortune.html

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jraines
This is a good supplement if you're interested in the free vs. not-free debate
(aka M. Arrington vs. 37signals). The concept of "mental transaction costs" --
the "cost" associated with making a decision of whether something is worth
paying for and how much is it worth -- is a useful one. For me personally, if
I decide something, particularly an _online service_ , is worth paying for _at
all_ , I'd probably just as soon pay $20 as some fraction of a penny. In other
words, if it's not free and it's claiming to add value to my life, it had
better be adding at least $20 worth and convince me as such. Then again I've
never given much thought as to what micropayments _would_ be good for, so
counterpoints are welcome.

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heri
i think the answer lies on how you design the charging system. if users have
to through a cart/transaction system, micropayments would never work. it
should be simpler (say, with one click) with as less friction as possible.

micropayments are good for microservices. say you want to use basecamp for 1
week but dont want to pay the monthly service. itunes music store is another
"microstore".

