ImpulsePay, the mobile payment service in the UK, has launched PublishPay, which is designed to help publishers charge for their content on mobiles. It does this in two ways.
On the content side, the platform is able to turn any RSS feed (which can be kelp private) into a mobile-friendly website, a potentially cheaper option than building a native app. In turn, that content can then be charged for – and to a reader’s mobile phone bill or pre-pay credit – through ImpulsePay’s support for Payforit, the mobile payments service backed by all the UK’s mobile operators. This provides a fairly frictionless alternative to Premium SMS or credit card payments — see our previous coverage.
Interestingly (or opportunistically), ImpulsePay is pitching the news off the back of the FT’s new HTML5 iPad-optimized version, which as we noted, by being browser-based conveniently bypasses Apple’s in-app purchasing mechanism and in turn the company’s 30% cut. To that end, ImpulsePay says there are no set up or monthly fees and publishers keep 75% of the transaction fee.
In terms of the type of paywall that can be erected, content can be charged per-article or per-day, while the service also allows for subscription payments to be taken, potentially creating a recurring revenue stream.
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