Online Shopping With a Kick (Back)

For those of us who dream of getting paid to shop while happily rooted to the couch, Christmas has come early this year.

Online shopping has always been convenient. Now it’s profitable, too. Ebates.com (https://www.ebates.com), which was launched last month, is a virtual shopping mall that features links to more than 50 online merchants. Shoppers can use Ebates.com to window shop--er, screen shop--for anything from computer games to pet products. And the company pays you for it!

Here’s how it works: Ebates.com earns something known as affiliate fees from its merchants, then returns them to its shoppers. For instance, if you go through Ebates.com to buy a book from Amazon.com, Amazom.com kicks back a percentage of the sale to Ebates.com, which kicks it back to you.

“We’ve created the most convenient shopping experience possible by letting people access all kinds of sites through one centrally located site,” says co-creator Paul Wasserman, 35, a former San Mateo district attorney. “But what really sets us apart is cash.”

The idea works so well that Wasserman says he held off on a couple of his own purchases until the site was launched. Affiliate fees can be as much as 25%, he says. According to Wasserman, Ebates.com sends checks to its shoppers every three months. But, he says, as more people visit the site, not only will more merchants be added, rebates will be sent immediately upon purchase.

Now, if only someone would come up with a way to make money while watching TV.