What is a paid-link?
What is a paid-link?Today, all content on the Internet is accessed through links. A paid-link is simply a link with a price and access control. When a paid-link is clicked, the user needs to confirm the payment for the link to open the requested content.
Where can I see examples of how to use iCents.net?Below you can find fake demo websites that demonstrate the iCents.net technology in action:
In the Developers section you can also find:
How much are our fees?Please, visit this page.
What is the price range for payments using paid-links?From US$ 0.01 up to US$ 10.00, or the equivalent in other currencies.
What is a micropayment and what is a micro-subscription?A micropayment is a generic term used to define low value payments. There is no accurate and formal definition of how much this value is, but iCents.net considers a micropayment to be any payment between US$ 0.01 and US$ 10.00. A micropayment is used to pay for specific digital content sold as a unit, whether it is a song, a game session, a photo, a video, a map etc.
An iCents.net micro-subscription is used to make a one-time payment for a whole package of digital content, whether it is an entire session of a website, or an entire website.
Is iCents.net the same as other micropayment companies? What is MTC?iCents.net is the first company to create a payment platform that significantly reduces the Mental Transaction Cost, or MTC. The MTC is considered to be largely responsible for the difficulty of selling content on the internet.
By reducing the MTC, iCents.net makes the sale of content easier than ever. For this to hold true it is necessary that the iCents.net platform be correctly used by your website. Understanding MTC helps websites sell content, and that's why the iCents.com website contains a great deal of information on the MTC subject.
iCents.net also introduced the micro-subscription concept, half-way between micropayments and traditional subscriptions, harnessing the advantages of both models.
Can I use iCents.net for donations?Yes, iCents.net has specific functionality for micro-donations (using the donation link).
Can I use iCents.net to pay for media licensing?Yes, iCents.net has specific functionality for micro-licensing. There will be more information soon.
What can be paid through the iCents.net payment platform?The iCents.net platform can only be used for small value payments for digital content.
This digital content must be permitted according to the rules of iCents.net, of PayPal and of the payment system the user pays with. This digital content must legal in the US, in the country of the sender (payer), and in the country of the receiver (payee).
In particular, it is not possible to sell physical products or expensive digital products, and it is not permitted to use iCents.net to gamble.
On a paid-link, can you simply copy the link location and bypass the iCents Payment Window, getting
access to the content for free?No. iCents is composed of two parts. The first part is creating paid-links (micropayments and/or micro-subscriptions).
The second part is controlling access. We are finishing the development of the access control part, and you will be able to do it in a number of ways. The easiest one will be to install some software we'll provide, and then define your own naming convention. Our default (that you may change) is that all URLs that contain the term "_pay" should be controlled by the server. For example, the following URLs are controlled:
http://www.icents.net/examples/image_pay.gif
or
http://www.icents.net/examples_pay/image.gif
This will be enough to control access. As you can see, it is easy to protect a whole folder or a single file, since the "_pay" can be anywhere within the URL.
How can I open an "iCents.net Account"?It is not necessary to open any account with iCents.net, because:
Which currencies does iCents.net accept?Users can use more than 150 currencies to see the prices of the links and pay them.
Your website can use dollars or your local currency to assign prices to the links, among the more than 150 currencies available. Regardless of the website currency, users always see prices already converted to their own currency of choice.
For example, French or German users see prices in Euros, even when they visit a US-based website whose links are priced in dollars.
However, websites receive payments only in US dollars. The number of acceptable receiver currencies will soon be increased.
Which languages does iCents.net operate in?iCents.net is currently being translated to English, French, Spanish and German. Other languages will come later.
Is it necessary for the user to install any software to use iCents.net?The Internet user does not need to install any software.
What is the recommended duration for a micro-subscription?A micro-subscription, once paid, should give access to your website's content from a few hours up to a maximum of 24 hours. We suggest that the user always be given much more access time than necessary to use the website's content, but never exceeding 24 hours.
For many reasons, the user experience in using micro-subscriptions is disrupted substantially for terms longer than 24 hours, making it difficult to sell long-term micro-subscriptions in practice. This does not restrict your websites usage. Since it is very easy and cheap to micro-subscribe, your user can even micro-subscribe to your website every day, if desired.
Can I define different prices with different durations for different content on the same page of my website?Yes. Each paid-link is totally independent and can be priced however you like.
Can I sell a monthly or annual subscription on my website through the iCents.net platform?No. The maximum duration of a micro-subscription through iCents.net is 24 hours. A monthly subscription is considered a traditional subscription, and has a number of disadvantages compared to a micro-subscription.
However, iCents.net is compatible with other traditional, monthly or annual, subscription systems, meaning you can offer both micro-subscriptions and traditional subscriptions at the same time in your website.
What is the Freemium Business Model?Freemium is a business model which works by offering basic services for free, while charging for premium content, advanced or special features.
The word freemium combines the two aspects of the business model: free and premium. We recommend that iCents.net payments be used by your website within the Freemium business model.
What is the best business model for my website: Advertising or selling premium content?You could and should implement both business models in your website. As long as it is done correctly, you do not need to choose between one and another. Offer both!
While my website is under development, can it test it without spending real money?Yes, iCents.net allows the very easy creation of test accounts, which permits you to test as much as you want without spending anything. Please, visit this page.
What if a user does not recognize certain payments on my website?The amount will be reimbursed to the user and discounted from your website, unless a substantial amount of time has passed, as defined by iCents.net.
What security does the iCents.net platform provide?iCents.net uses standard proven cryptography, tested and recommended by the US Government.
Does the user's browser need to accept cookies and have JavaScript turned on?Yes, and this is the standard configuration of all browsers on the market. Users rarely disable cookies or JavaScript. However, note that users that disable JavaScript won't have access to your premium content, since access control is done server-side.
Will iCents.net sell information about the users that visit my website to third party companies?Under no circumstances. Selling information is not and will never be part of our business model.
Can I personalize the iCents Payment Window on my website?No. In order to improve user experience the users need to see a familiar design, and this is not possible if each website uses its own design. Ideally, the user should perceive the Payment Window as general system functionality, and not as something specific to your website.
What is the difference between iCents.net and... PayPal, for example?PayPal is a payment system, while iCents.net is a payment platform.
When a website implements iCents.net technology, its users can use the iCents Payment platform to pay for digital content through the payment systems that they already have, like PayPal.
iCents.net allows users to pay for digital content without disrupting the user experience, and thereby reducing the user's "Mental Transaction Cost" (MTC) when making low value payments.
In other words, iCents.net does not substitute the user's online payment system; it rather permits this very system to be used much more efficiently to pay for online content. Thereby, iCents.net helps to increase payments transactions both to your website and to online payments systems.
Please note iCents.net doesn't do money transfers, doesn't ask for or keep credit card or bank account information, and doesn't ask the user to create any "iCents account". iCents.net cannot be used to pay for physical products (only digital stuff) and cannot be used to pay for anything costing more than 10 dollars. So, iCents.net is not a payment system and is not a competitor to the many online payment systems on the market.
