Fun Size Bytes

The way that you can tell that Marco is a nice guy is that he didn’t add “Got any more dumb questions?” after his reply.

Here’s another choice example of why I like him:

On Quora, someone asked: “What is the Readability & Instapaper business model? Is it same for both?

Here is Readability’s answer:

Readability is a web reading platform that first and foremost is trying to make the web a better place to read. We think there are business opportunities around that. We also have a unique rev share around publishers on the web. We earmark a big chunk of paid fees that can be claimed by writers or publishers on the web.

Readability was born out of a need, not a business plan. But from a need that seems universal, business opportunity usually follows.

Now, here’s Marco’s answer:

I sell an app for money, then I spend less than I make.

Simple, eh?

Instapaper is one of the best apps on iOS. In fact, if you had an iPad which only had Safari (web browser) plus Instapaper, you’d still be better off than owning just about any other tablet out there.

Instapaper was $10 when I bought it. It was $5 for awhile, and now it’s down to $3.

Well, I’m going to put my money where my mouth is and say that I’ve gotten 10 times as much use ought of it, and am going to give away 10 copies of Instapaper.

If you’re interested, email instapaper0814@luo.ma and tell me which email address you use for the App Store. That’s it. Once this is over I’ll delete the email you sent me and won’t add you to any mailing lists or any other crap like that.

(Rules are these: 1. Instapaper will be “gifted” through the iOS App Store, which probably means that you’ll need a US iTunes account. Sorry. 2 Void where prohibited. 3. Other disclaimers as applicable.)