What's Free on the Internet: An Update for Users (2001)

Much of the early success of the Internet could be traced to the fact that users received many services for free. It was possible to get unlimited Internet access through NetZero.com, free voice mail from Ureach.com and free subscriptions to Wired and other magazines from various sites, but those days are ending fast. The shake-up on the stock market has forced Internet companies to meet a new requirement -- to actually make money. Even so, it is still possible to find some free services over the Internet. This article will provide an update about what is still available for free, and will explain how you can access it. But there are two important caveats: 1) You get what you pay for; there are no guarantees about the quality of what you get over the Internet. 2) Anything said in this article may be obsolete by the time you read it. Many free Internet services have gone out of business, others may fail. Since having an on-ramp is the essential first step in doing anything on the Internet, this article will begin with a discussion of Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Once users have an ISP, they can then explore other free services, including e-mail, web site hosting, long distance telephone, faxing, software, file storage and news and information. We will discuss each of these after a discussion of ISPs. THE INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER: THE ESSENTIAL ON-RAMP TO THE INTERNET In order to take advantage of the free products and services the Internet offers, you must be able to access the Internet. This means you must have an ISP. Companies, such as AOL, MSN, Mindspring and AT&T WorldNet, are Internet Service Providers that charge a monthly fee. But there are several free ISPs. A free ISP offers many of the same services as those that charge a monthly fee: users receive access to the Internet and e-mail. There are two types of free Internet Service providers: those that use advertising to pay for the service and those without advertisements. The most common free ISPs use advertisements to generate revenue. They work on the same principle as broadcast television stations. Adrevenues pay for the service. Adbased ISPs include NetZero (www.netzero.com), Juno (www.juno.com , and Bluelight (www.bluelight.com). Internet advertising can take different forms. The ISP can require users to use a web browser that has been modified to include buttons that link to advertisers. It can also use banner ads that stretch across the top or bottom of your screen. The ISP can also use a pop-up window. A pop-up window is a miniature web browser that automatically starts when visiting a certain web page and floats on top of your main web browser. If you are interested in the ad, you can click it to go to the advertiser's web site and learn more about the product. To provide the most relevant ads to consumers, some free ISPs monitor the web sites users visit. However, privacy advocates have become concerned about this. The best advice is to carefully read any service agreements before signing-up with any ISP, free or pay. The second type of free ISP is more rare. These services will generally be offered by companies as a perk to their consumers. One service is On-line (www.amexol.net). It claims to offer local access numbers that cover most of the United States. A small graphic (1) is placed on your screen that reads American Express and the user must click on it to access the Internet service. Also, the first web page that will be seen will be an web page. That page allows the user to access various services. Also, clicking once on the floating icon provides shortcuts to services such as on-line banking and brokerage services (Exhibit 1). The only catch is the user must be an cardholder to gain access to the service. currently limits users to 35 free hours of Internet service per month. …