Will Facebook Kill Micropayment Sites?

Simple it is - You post a link or write a note and people liking it on Facebook. Now extend this simple use case - You get credit points from Facebook for each like on your wall and similarly credit points deducted for each like you make on other's wall. After the netting process, you are left with a lumpsum credit say at the end of a month which you can convert for a real purchase online or say a coupon. Will this be the next level of social interactions? One Click Monetization of our social life on the web? The number of 'likes' will decrease perhaps on the fear of we losing out our points but will the inhibitions and quandary be still there while supporting a cause strong enough for an adrenaline rush within.

The case of Flattr

I remember signing for Amazon , putting my credit card details and then carry on with whatever i want to purchase. Unlike the other online buying sites (say Makemytrip.com or irctc.in) , i need not give my card details after the first purchase; they pick the predefined address and card details. Now think of a restaurant with no price list. Its totally left to the discretion of the customers as to how much they want to pay - basically extending the tipping etiquette to a full swing. Now what if it happens for the loads of online contents - articles,  blog posts, videos et all. This is what Flattr tries to do - providing a quick one-click easy way of paying to online contents. 

The image shows what put them to popularity chart. After Visa, MasterCard and Paypal closed their channels, Flattr was one of the few remaining medium through which people could donate to wikileaks. You just need to create an account and start embedding within their blog the flattr button like the one below.

Anyone else having the flattr account can use this button to like and pay/donate.Flattr makes revenue by cutting 10% of the money made by the content provider as their fee.

Cultural Catch: In simple words, voluntary payments are still like the tip we pay in restaurants, an etiquette that has survived years to become a collective habit amongst the masses.But do micropayments site such as this one have this time to catch. By the time they will do, a Facebook or a Google is sure to catch on this trend.