One of the biggest conflicts between adult book and video stores and adult Website providers is that the former are positive that the latter are plotting to take all the stores' business away. If only there were a way to bring these two sides together...
Introducing I-Bucks, a prepaid Internet "charge" card, sold through adult retailers, that allows even the bankrupt to enjoy streaming video or hardcore photography on their computers.
"It started off as a kids' game," recalls I-Bucks' Tim Lennane. "You know Magic: The Gathering? We had wanted to negotiate with the manufacturer of the game to produce the game online, put numbers on each of the cards, put the same cards online, and you could play those cards. As they gained more hit points, they'd be more valuable in trade. Then my brother said, 'Hey, that sounds like a phone card.' I go, 'Oh, prepaid Internet cards; anonymous cash. Well, that's a good idea.' So about a year and a half ago, we created the system, the database, security, checks and balances, put up a bunch of sites where the cards worked, and started handing out cards at markets."
It's a win/win idea. Webmasters who'd like the card to be able to access their sites (generating advertising bucks as unique hits grow) can get that access for free, and stores that sell the cards can see half the retail price as profit. And the I-Bucks Website - www.I-Bucks.com - links to all sites where the cards will work.
"The Websites get a great advantage in that they can advertise right on the cards, which will lead people directly to them," notes I-Bucks' Scott Greene. "We can have cards that are dedicated to individual sites as well as cards that are for a group or a ring. We can configure it to denominations; we can do any sort of limitation people want. Cards can be included in magazines, for example, as a promotional item; as well as being bought in stores. Everybody wins, because it means all of the people who don't have credit cards, who are afraid to use credit cards, can now go to these sites. It's going to boost tremendously the amount of traffic everybody gets. It's a way for stores to get repeat business. People will come back and buy this just like they would buy a lottery ticket at a 7-Eleven, and buy extra product at the same time."
Other advantages for consumers include the "pay as you go" aspect, which prevents recurrent billings and the hassle of charge-backs.
Greene notes that the cards come on a hanger backing that "will explain how the card is used, and also makes a very eye-catching display."
So far, the company also produces just one "dedicated" or "subscription" card, which will only access one company's Websites - but it's a biggie: Hustler Online.
"That's our premier card," Lennane noted. Access to I-Bucks' generic card is free to Webmasters, "but if you're a big site and want your own card, then you have to pay for it."
The company also plans to issue limited-edition collector cards with unique pictures, such as the Ed Powers card displayed at the AEE.
While the cards' use is limited to a small but growing number of sites as of this writing, the company expects both card sales and usable Websites to snowball in the near future. For more information contact the company through its Website, or call Lennane at (310) 328-8979.
