New businesses that were previously impractical could become viable. Research bureaus could answer how-to questions from hobbyists or retrieve corporate information for investors for a couple of bucks a pop. Unpublished authors could make their books available online at 50 cents per chapter. But credit cards aren't the payment solution because of their relatively high transaction costs. Moreover, many potential online buyers, such as teen-agers, don't have credit cards.
Significant riches await the companies that solve the low-cost online transaction riddle.
Even if those companies made only a few pennies per sale, the volume of cash changing hands would generate tremendous revenue. Companies such as DigiCash and CyberCash tried and failed to get sufficient traction in the marketplace. Now, companies such as iPin and Qpass are trying. Once the systems gained acceptance, their owners could offer the services to other online vendors. I can just hear a newspaper publisher or recording company mogul protesting that providing micropayment services isn't part of his business model.