Surfers Will Pay

It's nice to see that there is enough value on the web today that people will pay for it. That is exactly why is happening according to a study done by the Online Publishers Association and reported in eMarketer. This is good news. What is paid for is perceived to have higher value for the user. Why else would they pay?

Business content, by far, is the highest paid category in this study. Perhaps because those subscribers are expensing the cost to their employer as part of their job requirement.

According to a study released by the Online Publishers Association, conducted by comScore Networks, US consumers spent $675 million on online content in 2001. In fact, spending grew by at least $20 million each fiscal quarter between Q1 2001 and Q1 2002.

Perhaps there is some hope, after all, for a subscription based model of survival. The Wall Street Journal has succeeded on line. It's nice to see other models work as well.

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