Google Contributor is a new service that gives Internet users the ability to get rid of annoying ads on websites for a monthly fee. The service works with specific partner websites. In an online landscape where making money is difficult, the concept of paying to get rid of ads could turn out to be a great way to make money off the web.
People participating in the Google Contributor program can set their own monthly fee -- between $1 and $3 -- based on the level of support they are willing to provide to participating websites.
Google hasn't made it completely clear how much of the monthly fee is actually passed on to publishers. However, news site Mashable, image aggregator Imgur and satire newspaper The Onion have all signed up as partners.
Why This Trend Is Growing
- Ad-blocking Services
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Developing ad-blocking services that offer users the ability to pay a monthly fee to remove ads from websites.
- Paid Ad Removal
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Creating platforms where internet users can pay a monthly fee to eliminate unwanted ads from online content.
- Monetizing Ad-free Experience
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Exploring ways to generate revenue by offering users the option to pay for an ad-free browsing experience.
Industries Being Reshaped
- Online Advertising
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Finding new approaches to online advertising and revenue generation with the rise of ad-blocking services.
- Publishing
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Adapting business models and exploring alternative revenue streams to counter the impact of ad-blockers.
- Digital Media
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Developing new strategies to engage users and generate revenue in a landscape where digital ad-blocking is prevalent.
