I don't see how this would solve the problem at all.

Publishers have no motivation to start a free online reader unless it generates revenue in some way. Ads are never enough. Hulu, a free video hosting site for TV shows which is owned by several major broadcasters, has been hurting for money for a while now, so they're introducing a paid subscription plan. Crunchyroll, which streams anime, has many restrictions on free members and a subscription plan.

How would selling online copies work, anyway? What's to stop people from illegally redistributing it?

@Diokhan: holy crap TL;DR lol