Google Announces One Pass
We’ve been waiting for it and it is finally here, Google’s one-click payment system for online publishers is here. Google One Pass is a Google Checkout service that lets publishers set their own prices and terms for each individual service of digital content.
Google One Pass allows publishers to use this new e-commerce functionality to embed into any site and require readers to purchase the content for use. In the release Google says that publishers will have the flexibility to charge for a vast amount of options for including subscriptions, metered access, pay-per-article, multi-issue packages and more. Users who purchase the content can access it on tablets, smartphones and websites using Google’s sign-on service.
An extended service from Google One Pass enables metered service, allowing publishers to charge for content after it hits a certain amount of views but it can charge frequent visitors for additional views. One Pass gives publishers the added benefit of a coupon-based system to grant access to existing users. This complex service even enables mobile payments in mobile apps in instances where the mobile terms of service grants access to mobile payments that take place outside of the app market.
Google boasts that this lightweight service is able to be implemented on any website.
The basic workings of One Pass is simple. A publisher hosts their own content and can upload a list of the monetized content to Google’s interface. After processing the entries publishers need to add a piece of code to their site that will recognize the paid content and will be ready for implementation.
Google is initially rolling out access to the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the U.K. Already big services are lined up to use One Pass including Popular Science, Media General, NoucelObs and Rust Communications.
It is clear Google is competing with Apple’s subscription model, and PayPal. Both services have introduced micropayments and all there are keeping their noses to the ground to get the upper hand. Details on One Pass is still vague but the service does seem more publisher friendly over Apple and PayPal.
