We got more than one email this week asking us to join the rebirth of AllAdvantage, the bubble-era pyramid scheme. The new company is called AGLOCO, and it is pre-launch, but the idea is the same — get paid to surf the web. This time, the motto is “own the internet.” To all those saying today is different than the last bubble…well, not anymore.
Though advertising and analytics techniques have improved a bit since 1999, it seems that AGLOCO (created by a couple of the AllAdvantage founders) is going with the tried and true banner at the bottom of the browser, called the “Viewbar.” Members will join the cooperative for free and take a stake in the company as well as a share of its revenues. AGLOCO promises to pay out an hourly rate for using the web while running the Viewbar, plus extra for the people you recruit to the system and the people they recruit to the system (up to four levels down).
From the FAQ on the password-protected demo site:
What is AGLOCO™ all about?
AGLOCO™ is the first Internet based economic network, which enables you as a Member to Get your share of the Internet. Advertiser’s, search companies, online merchants and other businesses currently pay lots of companies to deliver people like you to them for attention and commerce. With AGLOCO™ they will be paying YOUR company. AGLOCO™ is also a global community of Internet users whose active Members can paid for all their online activity. By downloading our proprietary Viewbar™TM technology, members benefit from engaging content tailored to their interests. AGLOCO™ also pays its members to refer their friends to the community (and for those friends to refer more friends through four levels of extended referrals.)
Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble! But in this day and age of cheap entrepreneurship, AGLOCO won’t have to raise hundreds of millions, right? We are going to try to sign up so we can tell you more (hey, why not?).
26 comments so far
11:47 AM PT
I wonder which advertiser will agree to such a thing. If these viewers are getting paid a portion of advertising revenue for their viewing habits, I wonder what quality of web users they will get, and will this advertising ever translate to sales.
If there is one market segment I would avoid as an advertiser, it would be this one.
12:04 PM PT
Wow, I can’t wait to see how this pans out…
I gasped when I opened my RSS reader and read “AllAdvantage is Back”. I think this officially confirms we are once again in a bubble.
12:31 PM PT
Interesting is how the Google ads on this page look like: “Get Paid Cash, Non-USA” and “Make Money Beat Adwords” where the two I saw while browsing this page.
And regarding the topic of the article. The sad truth is that greedy people will always find other greedy people who are more stupid then themselfs. Travel the world and you’ll find the same pattern regardless whether it’s big or small business.
12:49 PM PT
Heh, that was idea. I own a share of the internet (as in the network of networks). I will sell a cubic mm of air around my wireless AP for just a few hundred $. For just a few thousand $ you can pick outside my house which one (cubic mm of air) you want. Please read the EULA regarding the wind.
1:35 PM PT
When Bubble Era Standouts Are Exhumed From The Dead…
The other day, someone asked me if there were signs that this new boom or bubble was similar or different…
2:32 PM PT
I was a member of All Advantage and got actual checks from them… and regardless of them eventually going under, my check cashed, and that’s what matters, right? Besides, I doubt that this company, AGLOCO, is going to do things exactly the same way All Advantage did…
4:01 PM PT
gentlemen, start your egg timers.
4:14 AM PT
Web under threat from Bloggers…
Tim Berners-Lee is reported in the Guardian as believing the Web is under threat of being overwhelmed by fraudsters, cheats, spammers et al - and bloggers are potentially part of the problem. To quote the Guardian article:
“there is a great danger …
4:40 PM PT
Good Lord, talk about rising from the dead.
Please tell me that they haven’t been able to raise any money.
6:44 PM PT
I can’t belive you guys think its a bad thing! AllAdvantage never took money away from me - They gave me money! out goes the scheme argument!
can someone tell me where I can sign up?? where’s the link? I got in late last time and made less money than my friends did! not happening again.
11:29 AM PT
How can anyone forget when Fortune (correctly) dubbed AllAdvantage “The Dumbest Dot Com”?
Relive the memories at http://www.xent.com/april00/1287.html
9:12 AM PT
I was a corporate employee with AllAdvantage and am now involved with the AGLOCO launch.
As your blog and the myriad of responses suggest, it will be very interesting to see how the new company/concept is received by the general public and advertisers.
I can tell you that it is NOT identical to AllAdvantage.
6:33 PM PT
AGLOCO can in fact make you money from the activities you are already performing… why wouldnt you try it?
11:41 PM PT
AGLOCO launches — will pay you to surf the Web…
AGLOCO is a controversial new Stanford-based start-up that wants to pay you to surf the Web, in return…
12:38 PM PT
No user got harmed with AllAdvantage (or they did?)… many people got their checks monthly :)
2:01 AM PT
I’ve had a couple of emails so far about this and with a newsletter of over 23,000 people it’s clearly very tempting at least to mention it next time I write but I like to do due diligence rather than just shove out everything that comes my way. Hence I’ve visited this site and others to find out more.
My initial concern, apart from the historical legacy, is that the “earnings calculator” on the agloco site doesn’t have any units linked to it.
I’m talking units like “dollars” or “cents” etc.
It looks very impressive to see that you can make, say, 19,563 a month. But 19,563 what? If dollars then whatever the critics may say, this would be a hard opportunity to ignore.
But if micro-linden-dollars I’m not so sure.
I’ve written to the company asking for clarification.
If the adverts that show in the Viewbar are relevant to the web page, then like AdSense, the distribution of the Viewbar could take off. It could also be a very attractive medium for advertisers, especially if there was an easy way to sign up just as there is for the AdWords program.
The business model may be simply to make as much money as they can and just divide it up pro-rata and that’s fair enough in which case the real calculation you need to do is work out how many “points” you make and divide that by the total number of “points” earned globally to calculate your share. Then multiply that by the company’s earnings less the 10% management fee.
This could still be big. Look at what happened to Google!
12:06 AM PT
I had over 10,000 sign ups for AllAdvantage and made over $25,000 from them last time. I can’t make for see what I can do with AGLOCO. :)
1:26 PM PT
How does this company earn fees from products you purchase on merchants sites ?
If a customer is referred through someone elses Adwords Ad and somehow this company still gets a fee, I’d like to know how ? As an advertiser I sure would be pissed if I lost my fee somehow.
2:10 AM PT
AllAdvantage was great back in the day. I had my utilities all paid for, for a very long time…well…till AllAdvantage started cutting back, and eventually, died.
Although I’ve got my account ready, I’m optimistically skeptical. It could be the greatest comeback ever, or a big flop. Since the program is based on a share structure, if the company doesn’t make it, we won’t see a dime. At least AllAdvantage had instant gratification in the form of a monthly check. I guess we’ll know in time.
1:08 AM PT
It makes absolutely no sense to complain about this company.
Joining and membership is totally FREE. Any amount they pay you whether it is ten dollars or ten thousand dollars and whether it only happens for one month or for the next fifty years is money that you otherwise would not have.
Join, earn, and be happy about it.
Please read my full review:
9:23 AM PT
I am glad to hear the positive side of *Agloco…I really can’t see the harm or the risk? It’s a new age , lets give the world a chance.
6:14 PM PT
I’ve heard that some of the big web marketers have already joined up -sounds very positve to me!
5:02 AM PT
Agloco info:
http://tinyurl.com/ybd2wt
11:47 AM PT
Sign up here: http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBH5238
8:02 PM PT
thanks to all, who posted positive comments about agloco; Those who’re new, please use my link http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBH1251 If u need more details pls visit http://www.workfromhome-agloco.blogspot.com
2:37 AM PT
very interesting stuff, let wait and see how this one will turn up