jayeff

There are a few sites which offer a range of price/commission options, but AFAIK nothing as flexible as you are suggesting. Which from an entirely selfish point of view is a shame, because personally I would jump at it.

But in the wider context, one problem is user credibility. Scotch whisky distillers for example, rather than reduce their price and become perceived as a non-premium product, label their excess production under one-time names and sell it cheaply. Philip Morris won't sell Marlboro cigarettes to anyone who reduces their prices too far, even though tax-free outlets and the like could easily discount more. Surfers will also get p*ssed with high profile sites which they see at one price on one site and another price somewhere else, because there is always the suspicion that if you keep looking, you will find it still cheaper.

Also, price competition is a very slippery slope, because anyone can do it and the eventual winner is always whoever has the deepest pockets. Further, what you are suggesting would be a boon for TGP operators who function on high-volume/low-margin and ideally suited to them. But theirs is probably the most expensive traffic to cater for (between wasteful click-throughs, hosted galleries, etc). Do you really want to give them a significant advantage over sites which are more expensive to run (such as review sites), yet may be more productive for you?

Discounts can be a useful tool, but their main value is when you can offer them periodically to everyone and for a length of time raise your profile across the 'Net and not just in a few corners of it. But when overused, they become like the car industry: who buys a regular car any more expecting to pay ticket price?