Making money when surfing?

I took a look at that site. They seem slick, but the payouts are really, really low. For January of 2003, the payout is less than 50 cents per hour! Plus, you're only paid if you actively click at least once every minute AND you keep the spediabar (that's the ad software they have you download) on top of all of your other applications. Hence, you can't do online banking or surfing or A2K or spreadsheets or word processing or anything else with your machine while using the spediabar. Essentially, you give away your time to Spedia in exchange for a very small amount of revenue.

Let's say 50 cents per hour (only because the math is easier). For every 30 days, let's assume you diligently go on every single day and make the one-hour time period. This is $15/month. You aren't paid until you hit $30, so the first month's revenues sit with Spedia until the second month has passed. This means you also lose the opportunity to earn interest (interest on $15 in a two-month period is less than a penny but you should still be aware of this).

For a year, you haul in $180 for 360 hours' worth of work. Oh yeah, this is income, so it's taxable. You should be paying about $63 in taxes on it, money which is probably not withheld by Spedia. So now your income is $117 for that same 360 hours' worth of work, or 32 1/2 cents per hour.

Spedia does offer ways to earn more points more quickly, but many of them are gambling-related. E. g. you go to a casino site and deposit $25 (way more than what you make every month with Spedia) and get 4200 points. Points allegedly represent US Dollars but there's no listed conversion rate, which the site admits is variable. Since it's highly doubtful that a casino would pay you $4200 for an initial deposit of $25, I suspect the conversion rate is 100 - 200 to 1, e. g. between 100 and 200 Spedia points translates into a dollar. Your 4200 points would then be worth $21 - $42. Even at the better rate, you had to hand over $25, so you're only dealing in a profit of $17.

Spedia (and the casinos which sponsor it) is out to make money. They're not going to give away anything of real value for any kind of real money if you're not giving them, in return, something of real value. Surfing the 'net just isn't a valuable enough activity and it's common enough that you don't even get value from rarity.

I'm afraid that if the site is legitimate, the work far exceeds the rewards, and if it isn't legitimate, then it's an even worse scenario.

If you want to earn points, might I suggest yahoo? They offer a point system with a lot less grief - just click on a provided url. You don't have to buy anything (although you earn points a lot more quickly that way) and don't have to spend any more time on the url beyond just letting the site load. Plus it's yahoo, so it's legit. Rather than paying $$, it's coupons and gift certificates, to places like the Gap or Burger King. Not a great payout, but you're not doing much to get this payout.

Of course a regular job pays a lot more than any of this, even a job at minimum wage, but if it's points you seek, my recommendation is yahoo or something like it - and even then, don't hold your breath expecting a big or quick payout.

It is possible but it means dealing with lots of "deals" that need to be looked at closely.

I know that some of those sites ARE paying people but probably not as much as you are led to believe they will.

They will pay you to fill out surveys, join other things and test products etc. It will usually be something like a couple dollars to join, then a fewe more for this and that, then it's cents here and there.

The payout only comes at something like $20. Until you make something like that you won't see any of it.

Now some of them advertise large earnings, that usually means you have to sign a bunch of people up.

So, while it's not easy (and do yourself a favor and create an email for yourself just for this purpose) I know people who have gotten money for this and I know many of those sites that pay commisions.

It's not going to make you rich and I personally don't find it worth the time but I know people who do.

I forgot, there are other sites that pay you to surf and they are paid per visitor that they send to sites. Same deal, it will only make you any real money if you are referring large (and I mean very very large) numbers of people.

I'd say these deals are good if you are a freebie/free gifts site webmaster.

The spediabar really makes the inconveniences to using other apps (I have tried the bar for several hours, the experience drove me to think they are preaching a propaganda. The several hours surfing only made me 3 cents or so! (O God!)).
As you two have pointed out, it doesn't seem worth to try.
Anyway, thanks for your commenting on the thread.

Deals like this reminded me of two old sayings:

"If you think that it is too good to be true, it probably is".

"There is a sucker born every minute".

Yes, there are people making money from these things...... The creators of the websites!

Phoenix beat me to what I was going to say. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!