Online sales of prepaid credits or the more commonly known “online loading” is one business model that many existing i-cafés are already offering not only to their customers but also to the general public. As the name implies, the sales transaction is done online or over an Internet connection which all i-cafés already have. Online loading is one business model that an i-cafe owner can have to augment his computer rental business. The percentage income on the online sales transactions can go as high as twelve (12%) percent depending on the distributor’s price and the product sold.

The biggest advantage of online loading business over the prepaid cards is having many products in a virtual inventory. An i-café owner who registers as a retailer of an online distribution company will be provided with a web portal where he can make the sales transactions of all the product lines that the distributor carry. Among the products or prepaid credits that can be sold by an i-café to its customers are:

1. Cellphone Prepaid Loads – Smart, Globe and Sun Cellular e-loads in all denominations.
2. Online Gaming Credits – almost all local gaming distribution companies sell credits to their gamers through online loading.
3. Special Online Products – credits needed to access some specialized online services like review materials for board examinations and training materials for call center agents are also sold via online loading.

If there is one hassle that can be said about this business model, it is the topping up or reloading of the i-café accounts with its distributor. At the moment, the common ways to top up an online retailer’s account include cash deposits to distributor’s bank account and fund transfer via SmartMoney or G-Cash. Both method requires the i-café owners to leave their place of business when their accounts run low and need topping. It would have been better if the transactions will use credit cards so that the i-café owners would not have to leave their shops.