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Square intros flat-rate payment option at $275 per month, hits small business sweet spot
Square is most often pitched as heaven for small businesses, but that 2.75 percent cut per transaction is sometimes a problem for stores that are too successful. Enter a new flat rate option. Shops that don't take more than $250,000 a year in Square payments, or charge more than $400 in a given sale, can instead pay a flat $275 per month regardless of how many swipes they take. The deal makes the most sense for businesses handling more than $120,000 a year through the reader, establishing a definite limit to its usefulness; this isn't exactly for a budding jeweler (or Starbucks). Even so, the simplicity of the rate might be very alluring for companies that aren't keen on surprise costs or working out the math, and it's a contrast to the half-steps towards flat rates taken by VeriFone and other, more traditional outlets going mobile.
OnLive's flat-rate PlayPack plan is live for all, debuts with 38 games
After a couple of months in beta, OnLive's PlayPack plan, which offers unlimited access to a selection of titles on the service for $10 a month, has officially launched. Saying that "the meteoric growth of Netflix reflects the enormous consumer demand for flat-rate instant-play media," company CEO and founder Steve Perlman made no secret of the company's inspiration for PlayPack when commenting on its official debut. OnLive hopes to grow the PlayPack selection with "premium, indie and classic games" on "a regular basis," with new additions being selected in part based on feedback from subscribers to the plan. The day one lineup of 38 games can be found after the break, and includes some titles that are entirely new to the service, most notably the original BioShock.
OnLive ushers in the MicroConsole with all-you-can-eat game plan for $10 a month
OnLive wants to be the Netflix of video games, that much is clear, and today it's rolling out a flat-rate monthly pricing plan called PlayPack to help seal the deal. It'll cost $9.99 a month when it launches January 15th, giving subscribers access to a back catalog of forty retired and indie titles, including a number of games entirely new to the OnLive service. What's more, if you bought the company's $99 MicroConsole, you'll get access to that entire flat-rate catalog free until the formal launch, meaning you'll have fourteen full games instantly ready to play the moment you boot it up. OnLive founder Steve Perlman tells us you can pay month-to-month and cancel PlayPack anytime you want, and OnLive will still store your savegames for a full year in case you decide to rejoin -- or if you want to mix and match flat-rate and a la carte titles without losing your precious progress. So, when are those MicroConsoles going to arrive? If you were among the first to buy, you could get yours this very afternoon, and Perlman says there are "thousands and thousands of boxes" shipping right now. PR after the break.
Boingo to drop roaming charges on hotspot network
Ah, Boingo just keeps getting sweeter. After showing off its mobile service and partnering with FON, now the WiFi operator is making it even cheaper to hop online via its worldwide hotspot network. The company has announced that it will be hitting us up with a flat-rate service for $39 per month, which will enable users to utilize "more than 100,000 WiFi hotspots" across the globe sans roaming charges. Of course, this won't impact those Boingo users who manage to stay within the confines of the US of A, but globetrotters will certainly appreciate the end of per-minute roaming charges when surfing abroad. [Warning: read link requires subscription]
