Most content is free on the Web, subsidized by advertising. Paying attention is the coin of the realm on the Internet. Jenks, a federal government worker who prefers not to be specific about just what it is he does, said he came up with his method of getting people to pay as a way to avoid having ads on his site. It's a concept similar to shareware, a method of distribution of software. With shareware, a user tries a copy of a computer program and buys it only if he or she likes it.
Shareware cuts out the middleman, reducing the cost of the product.
At Mind's Eye, Jenks' customers choose from stories by both known and unknown authors. To buy a story, though, a visitor to Mind's Eye must have an account with First Virtual, an electronic commerce system. Buyers enter a personal identification number into Mind's Eye's purchase forms, and then confirm the buy via e-mail. Credit card numbers never cross the Internet. But the vast majority of World Wide Web surfers don't have a First Virtual account, dramatically cutting down on the number of people who could buy a story from Mind's Eye even if they wanted to.