In the early days of the World Wide Web, there was a perception
that "everything is available on the Web free of charge." Of
course, today's more sophisticated Web surfer understands the
economic realities. If an organization spends thousands, or even
hundreds of thousands of dollars in collecting information and
placing it online, someone has to pay the bills. A few have
tried to pay bills by selling advertising. However, that usually
does not generate enough income to meet the expenses of a
commercial organization. As a result, most of the better online
sources of information can only be accessed by a paid
subscription. Examples that pop to mind include the Wall Street
Journal, Consumer Reports, and the Encyclopedia Britannica as
well as genealogy sites such as Ancestry.com. This economic
reality has forced Encyclopedia Britannica Online to charge
$11.95 per month for unlimited access. MSN Encarta is another
online encyclopedia that is available in two versions. The
stripped-down free edition is rather good