Join Transform 2021 for the most important themes in enterprise AI & Data. Learn more.


So you thought that recurring revenue streams are the sole province of funky web 3.0 services companies?

JustFab will send you a to-die-for clutch and blouse for $40 a month, and The Fancy will Fedex just about anything that its members like for $30. And yes, men can get a “sockscription” from smart socks manufacturer BlackSocks.com, or for under $10 the Dollar Rubber Club can even deliver a monthly pack of condoms straight to your door, every 30 days.

But the recurring revenue stream has been around for long before Basecamp and online project management, the Wall Street Journal’s paywall, or even the local newspaper that your daddy paid $5/month for.

But news is where the subscription model seems to have started, with newspapers and periodicals, way back in 1440.

Aria Systems, the cloud-based subscription billing management company, compiled a short history of the recurring revenue model, from Spotify and Netflix to telephone service back in the 1800s, and all the way back to newspapers and periodicals back in the 1400s … four years after Johannes Gutenberg started working on his printing press in Mainz, Germany.

Here’s the infographic:

photo credit: Great Beyond via photopin cc

VentureBeat

VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative technology and transact. Our site delivers essential information on data technologies and strategies to guide you as you lead your organizations. We invite you to become a member of our community, to access:
  • up-to-date information on the subjects of interest to you
  • our newsletters
  • gated thought-leader content and discounted access to our prized events, such as Transform 2021: Learn More
  • networking features, and more
Become a member