ITV (LSE: ITV) is the latest media company, spooked by fall from once-almighty online advertising, to wonder whether consumers may pay for content. Strategy director Carolyn Fairbairn told Thursday’s Future Of Broadcasting conference: “Micropayments are absolutely on our agenda ... The idea people will pay is something we should look at and do. We need some kind of payment system and then we will see if it flourishes.” Via Telegraph.co.uk.

But don’t expect payments on ITV.com any time soon. Not only has the broadcaster finally settled on the site (and its Virgin Media (NSDQ: VMED) VOD deal) as an ad-funded TV catch-up vehicle; Fairbairn said ITV is “part-funding the Digital Britain research into the viability of (micropayments)”, so it’s more likely that ITV is merely one of the companies involved in the Digital Britain-mandated Technology Strategy Board’s (TSB) upcoming industry-wide experiments on content monetisation strategies.

If the experiments ever make it to market, Fairbairn reckons: “We are going to need something like an Oyster card system for the internet,” referring to the London Underground pay-as-you-go ticket smartcard. And even if the TSB project yields an industry standard on micropayment methods, it’s not clear that ITV should adopt it - after all, it’s 50-year history has been as an ad-funded commercial distributor.

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