Housewife Tomoko Kobayashi puts on her Web businesswoman's hat at 9 a.m., after all her morning chores are out of the way.
She turns on her personal computer and opens the mail box. Of the dozens of e-mails she receives every morning, 10 or so are from companies on whose behalf she is contracted to sell products.
She then logs on to one Web site after another, tallying the value of commissions she earned the previous day by promoting everything from antisnoring mouthpieces to diet supplements and roast beef gift boxes -- all via her Web site.