Comments on: Google Checkout Does Micropayments! http://www.puredoxyk.com/index.php/2006/12/27/google-checkout-does-micropayments/ Polyphasic Sleep and Better Thinking Wed, 8 Sep 2010 17:33:18 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: puredoxyk http://www.puredoxyk.com/index.php/2006/12/27/google-checkout-does-micropayments/comment-page-1/#comment-1746 puredoxyk Thu, 28 Dec 2006 13:22:05 +0000 http://www.puredoxyk.com/index.php/2006/12/27/google-checkout-does-micropayments/#comment-1746 Hmm, they didn't clue me in on the fee (2% + $0.20 per transaction)-- I'd actually been looking for mention of it, but didn't find the page you did. However, this isn't exactly a death knell for micropayments. Here's why: 1. All transactions are free until the END of 2007, not the beginning. So the fees don't kick in until January 2008, according to the very page you so kindly cited for me. This is obviously an offer designed to get merchants aboard, but still, that's a whole year. 2. Google <em>does</em> listen, and a year is plenty of time for people to bug them about getting rid of the fee on transactions of less than $0.50 or so. They would still make plenty of money this way, I'm sure. I'll get started on bugging them right away! ;) 2.5 Additionally, if enough people are using Google for micropayments by the end of 2007 and turning the fees on would tick off their customer base, I bet Google is even more inclined to work with people. 3. <em>Somebody's</em> going to do micropayments, darnit. Google either knows this or will know it soon; they're usually not too far behind the curve. (Their secret? They listen to their techies. A friend of mine went to work for Google a few years back as a software engineer, and he's had nothing but good things to say about it (which is rare for a software engineer, believe me! ;) 4.  And lastly, only making a profit on $.50 really isn't that bad.  Even if it stayed that way, it would still be a far better deal than PayPal, and a definite step in the right direction. ...And hey, thanks VERY much for the additional info! It was very helpful, and I'll start a conversation with them about the details asap. But overall, I'm still very hopeful. -PD Hmm, they didn’t clue me in on the fee (2% + $0.20 per transaction)– I’d actually been looking for mention of it, but didn’t find the page you did. However, this isn’t exactly a death knell for micropayments. Here’s why:

1. All transactions are free until the END of 2007, not the beginning. So the fees don’t kick in until January 2008, according to the very page you so kindly cited for me. This is obviously an offer designed to get merchants aboard, but still, that’s a whole year.

2. Google does listen, and a year is plenty of time for people to bug them about getting rid of the fee on transactions of less than $0.50 or so. They would still make plenty of money this way, I’m sure. I’ll get started on bugging them right away! ;)

2.5 Additionally, if enough people are using Google for micropayments by the end of 2007 and turning the fees on would tick off their customer base, I bet Google is even more inclined to work with people.

3. Somebody’s going to do micropayments, darnit. Google either knows this or will know it soon; they’re usually not too far behind the curve. (Their secret? They listen to their techies. A friend of mine went to work for Google a few years back as a software engineer, and he’s had nothing but good things to say about it (which is rare for a software engineer, believe me! ;)

4.  And lastly, only making a profit on $.50 really isn’t that bad.  Even if it stayed that way, it would still be a far better deal than PayPal, and a definite step in the right direction.

…And hey, thanks VERY much for the additional info! It was very helpful, and I’ll start a conversation with them about the details asap. But overall, I’m still very hopeful.

-PD

]]> By: Dave McClure http://www.puredoxyk.com/index.php/2006/12/27/google-checkout-does-micropayments/comment-page-1/#comment-1745 Dave McClure Thu, 28 Dec 2006 12:14:15 +0000 http://www.puredoxyk.com/index.php/2006/12/27/google-checkout-does-micropayments/#comment-1745 nope, don't count on it... and certainly not after Jan 1st, 2007. both with Google and with PayPal (and with most anyone else as well that processes credit cards), there is a minimum transaction processing fee that is between 20-30 cents. thus, the minimum effective "micro-transaction" you could reasonably do without losing money is somewhere around a quarter with Google, or 35 cents with PayPal. however, most people probably wouldn't get a lot of value from this unless they start charging closer to .50 or more. see Google's fees here: https://checkout.google.com/seller/fees.html see PayPal's fees here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_display-receiving-fees-outside (full disclosure: i used to work for PayPal from 2001 to 2004) nope, don’t count on it… and certainly not after Jan 1st, 2007.

both with Google and with PayPal (and with most anyone else as well that processes credit cards), there is a minimum transaction processing fee that is between 20-30 cents. thus, the minimum effective “micro-transaction” you could reasonably do without losing money is somewhere around a quarter with Google, or 35 cents with PayPal. however, most people probably wouldn’t get a lot of value from this unless they start charging closer to .50 or more.

see Google’s fees here:
https://checkout.google.com/seller/fees.html
see PayPal’s fees here:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_display-receiving-fees-outside

(full disclosure: i used to work for PayPal from 2001 to 2004)

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