Many years ago. No let’s make that many, many years ago…when I was wetting my feet on the banks of the gushing Internet River our local newspaper, the infamous Deccan Chronicle carried a news item that caught my attention for more reasons than one.

They wrote about a site called www.nakednews.com.

The story was intriguing to say the least. And was for once true to character and reality. The site featured good looking women working as news anchors. The difference being that while they delivered hard core news headline by headline, they also removed pieces of their clothing, headline by headline.

Imagine an attractive newsreader announces that YS Jagan has won the elections with a record breaking majority.

And then she takes off her blouse.

She then adds that YSR’s wife also won the elections with a handsome margin.

And then she takes off her skirt.

And this goes on till the anchor is completely naked.

When I saw the site those many years ago, the site was free to view. But in the years that have passed I have realised that there is no free lunch on the internet. Not if you want to survive and thrive in a fairly competitive and fluid market.

My first reaction was that this was a clever attempt to marketize if not legalize pornography. I could see many pervs getting their dose of news from these bimbos and I could well imagine what the site would offer by way of evolution. Two anchors stripping alternatively. Men coming into the frame. Sexy moves being initiated. And so on and on.

What they did surprised me. They invited the audience to audition for posts of anchors.

Who would want to apply for a job which is nothing but that of a stripper, I thought. And went on to more relevant sites, more interesting sites, more monetised sites as the net went on from narrow band freedom to broadband pay per view.

This afternoon I have no idea why this site came to mind. Maybe it was because a friend asked me to take a critical look at breakingnews.com.

But see the site I did and was pleasantly surprised to see that it still existed. And not just that it was doing phenomenally well. Even getting Time Magazine to acknowledge that they are the best news coverage people this side of the BBC.

The subscription numbers have grown. The content delivery platforms have grown. And the naked ladies are laughing and running all the way to the bank.

So has the Internet evolved. Yes.

From snail pace to Mach and beyond. In more ways than one.

Truly if you are not making money by being present on the web you are just taking up space.