February 2011

There is so much free information on the web, why would you pay a cent for any more information?

It all depends on your information needs, your timeframe and how you will use the information you download.

Why do you need the information?
Every day we draw on, and make decisions based on information we get for free.  News services, weather forecasts, web sources, conversations with friends and colleagues.

When you need to dig deeper, make important decisions, or risk your reputation on the information you rely on – it is worth paying for information that may cost a little upfront, but may save you a lot in the long run.

What information are you looking for?
Today’s news or something that happened twenty years ago?  Information on the public record, which may be free and easy to access, or information, such as many company filings, which are available to the public, but may not be free of charge.

When do you need the information?
There is always a time factor in gathering good information.  If you need it pronto, and packaged in a format that suits your needs, it may be time to use a commercial source that is better suited for quick searching and packaging information in useful formats.

Using information appropriately
If you want good quality reliable information, it’s important to support and uphold ethical business practices regarding recognising intellectual property rights, licensing agreements and contracts for accessing and re-using information.

There is a lot of reliable free information available on the web and other sources

In many circumstances, free information is all you require for your business information.  For critical and important business issues, it is worth paying a little extra for your information needs.