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Flattr is a groundbreaking micropayment service
Micropayments are the Holy Grail of online exchange. Being able to pay for the content you like, even if it's a small sum, makes a huge difference for both the viewer and the creator.
There are numerous implementations of micropayment systems. Most people use PayPal; personally, I dislike it. They have something against my perfectly valid credit card, so I can never open an account; without an account, payment is a hassle.
Another problem with PayPal (and most other forms of payment) is psychological; every time I pay, it feels like ... I'm paying. I mean, it can quickly start feeling like I am spending a large amount of money, even though I'm not, just because I keep charging more and more to my card. Then there's the matter of transaction fees, etc.
Flattr solves some of these issues in a very creative way. You sign up for the service and pay a flat fee every month. When you see something you like and it has a Flattr button, you just click the button.
At the end of the month, your flat fee gets distributed evenly between all of the creators you've "Flattrd." If you clicked just five buttons, it gets divided by five; if you clicked a hundred, it gets split into a hundred equal tiny parts.
I think this is an awesome solution. It overcomes a large psychological block and makes it really easy to give out money. I think it's brilliant because it encourages you to click more rather than less; I mean, I am already paying the money anyway, so why not give some to another project too?
This, in turn, makes more creators see money for their work, and it helps popularize micropayments even further. Flattr isn't very popular yet, but I believe their model can make them a huge success. You can watch their video after the jump.
Comments
4
Subscribe to commentsstinlen56May 25th 2010 7:26AM
I don't think comparing this service to Paypal is valid, even on the micropayment level. The two services have different target uses. Flattr may be better to donate to open source projects, but it's not going to work making actual purchases on eBay or even where a minimum donation of some kind is required. Flattr seems like an interesting way to promote the concept of charitable giving, but that's about it.
Also, you know Bank of Israel credit cards are only good in Israel, right?
AemonyMay 25th 2010 9:05AM
stinlen56 is right on. Flattr might only work on smaller and more individual work, but that is in its own a remarkable good point. Just imagine it, suddenly bloggers and other different material creators have a change to get a little praise in the form of money.
I'm seeing a big use of Flattr on community sites like DeviantART and really any other place where users contribute in some way.
everydaypanosMay 25th 2010 3:34PM
Rewrd is an alternative. It's takes one-time payments only.
They also have a great post on the future of Micropayments http://status.rewrd.com/post/560683230/a-new-social-web-a-new-revenue-model
teqjackMay 25th 2010 9:41PM
Sounds like a decent start. Something like it, worldwide, for news sources would be handy - I cannot pay full subscription for the Wall Street Journal AND New York Times AND London Times AND Sydney Herald AND ...
Nore direct PayPal competitor -
http://www.gpal.net/