{"assets":[],"author_link":"author\/lansiir\/","author_name":"oldtopman","cat":"October Challenge 2012","categories":["October Challenge 2012"],"comments":[],"epoch":1348833120,"event":"","likes":5,"metadata":{"p_key":"78455","p_author":"oldtopman","p_authorkey":"0","p_urlkey":"287465","p_title":"Payment Processors \u2013 What to do?","p_cat":"October Challenge 2012","p_event":"LD24","p_time":"1348833120","p_likes":"5","p_comments":"0","p_status":"WAYBACK","us_key":null,"us_name":null,"us_username":null,"event_start":"1345766400","event_key":"12","event_name":"LD24"},"source_url":"2012\/09\/28\/payment-processors-what-to-do\/","text":"

With the October announcement just behind us, I\u2019ve been looking at three payment processors. Paypal<\/a>, Google Checkout<\/a>, and Amazon Payments<\/a>. Deciding between them is extremely difficult, and information is sparse. All I want to do is release my game as donationware, nothing fancy.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

PayPal:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Paypal has<\/a> it\u2019s<\/a> problems<\/a>. That being said, it has the easiest way to do what I want it to do. A neat little donation button that I can just paste into any old website (more on that later). No bank accounts required, no complicated payment options, no funny math on monthly paychecks. I\u2019ve used them before for other things and they\u2019re alright. But the question remains, are they worth using when I risk all the money I\u2019ve made.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Google Checkout:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Google Checkout, like other Google services, has a motto of \u201cDon\u2019t be evil\u201d. While I have no doubt that it\u2019s not perfect, they don\u2019t have the reputation of PayPal. I\u2019ve used Google Checkout a few times, and it\u2019s pretty good. Unfortunately, they require a website that you own the root directory to (no xxx.no-ip.org\/xxx.bitbucket.org domains). How you are payed is delightfully unclear, and I\u2019m continuing to research this for what I can get. Furthermore, the whole setup seems to be configured towards selling physical products, which I won\u2019t. I\u2019ll simply be charging $5 for the same download that everybody else gets for free. On top of that, there is no Pay What You Want setup, like there would be with the PayPal donate button.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amazon Payments:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Amazon Payments is run by the same people that run Amazon Inc. I have no doubt that they know how to process a lot of money quickly and efficiently. The \u201cone click payment\u201d option sounds pretty good for what I want, but hardly anybody uses them, and as such, there is even less information than on Google Checkout.\u00a0 Amazon does not have a PWYW button either.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Conclusion:<\/strong><\/p>\n

PayPal has been in business the longest, and knows just how to make a deal, sell goods, and pay people. Unfortunately, they also know just how much they can get away with, so using them is a gamble.<\/p>\n

Google Checkout seems to be a decent payment provider, but they are fairly new to the scene, and as such, there could be some bumps going down that road.<\/p>\n

Amazon Payments is unknown. While they have a great deal of experience selling things, they are unproven in the indie sector.<\/p>\n

Of course, this is just donationware, I don\u2019t need download links or DRM or anything of the sort. I\u2019d have no idea how to even begin on website development anyway! If any of you have used these, or have ideas on what to do, I\u2019d appreciate all of your advice.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2026maybe I\u2019ll just take bitcoins instead \":P\"<\/p>\n

Tags: amazon payments<\/a>, compo<\/a>, google checkout<\/a>, october<\/a>, october challenge<\/a>, oldtopman<\/a>, payment processors<\/a>, paypal<\/a><\/p>","time":"September 28th, 2012 11:52 am","title":"Payment Processors \u2013 What to do?","title_was_empty":false}