A lot of business is done on the internet, but the model for making money there isn’t as straightforward as “sell a thing, make a profit”. So how do the web services you use every day make money? The aptly named “How Do They Make Money” has some answers.
Often, the answer is subscribers, advertising and freemium, but other factors are in the mix too. Even with all those options, a lot of these services aren’t profitable. Which ones aren’t might surprise you. How Do They Make Money has a breakdown of revenue type and profitability of nearly 50 different prominent internet companies, and lets you arrange them by the kind of income they have, or the service they provide.
It’s a neat little distraction, but it’s worth noting that the site doesn’t cite its sources, so if you’re in this for anything more than mild amusement, you’re going to have to go vet the facts yourself. That aside, it delivers on the mild amusement side and provides an interesting look into many of the (free) services we often take for granted. Hopefully they’ll be adding even more companies in the future. [How Do They Make Money via The Verge]