To: jvncnet!ajc.com!mg@dowv
cc: online news 
In-Reply-To: <00648.2864973111.466@ajc.com>
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On Fri, 14 Oct 1994 jvncnet!ajc.com!mg@dowv wrote:

> Date	10/14/94
> Subject	Re: Online deals
> From	Mike Gordon
> To	online news
> 
>   Re: Online deals
> JerrySalv@aol wrote:
> 
> >As a freelance writer on superhighways and telecommunications in general
> I've
> watched the growth of on-line news with interest.  Can anyone explain how
> most new ventures are structured?  That is, do newspapers provide an
> electronic version to AOL for a set charge or are newspapers paid on the
> basis of use?<
 
> While I'm no industry guru, I would venture the opinion that online delivery
> is rapidly becoming a commodity; that owners of content increasingly will
> find themselves in the driver's seat; and that AOL-style deals, where the

Actually, there is already technology to circumvent the classic delivery
service lock-up.  Via Internet, a new breed of server called InfoMerchant
is sprouting up.  These are servers that provide information, take orders,
manage billing, and collect and distribute revenue from customers to
provider servers.

> delivery service controls publishers' format and revenue, will fade away.
> Instead, I think you'll see more a la carte pricing, per-view or by
> subscription, on both the commercial services and the Net, with publishers
> calling the shots. But I could be wrong.

Actually, I would guess we will see more flat-rate bundling, something
like an insurance company.  Users and corporations will pay a flat-rate
monthly to a service and the royalties will be distributed from there. 
The leveling effect is that heavy users are subsidized by light users and
the result is that more revenue is routed to the most heavily used services.

A company called FirstVirtual holdings incorporated has just released
products which make even conventional services billable without modifying
existing clients (ftp, mosaic...).

For more info contact Ed Levinson elevinson@fv.com




From rexb Thu Oct 27 15:49:42 1994