One method for Digital Downloads is to enable the Auto Return feature in your Account Profile. After a successful transaction, the buyer is immediately sent back to a specific page where they could download the item. Note, using this method, the URL can be shared with others as it is not "secure".
"Auto Return" immediately brings your buyers back to your specified URL upon payment completion. This feature replaces the standard PayPal hosted "Payment Done" page with a page hosted on your website.
To set up Auto Return, you need to turn it on in your Account Profile and enter the return URL that will be used to redirect your buyers back to your site.
Log in to your Account
Select "Edit Profile"
Under "Selling Preferences"
Select "Website Payment Preferences"
Note first option - Select "On" - Auto Return for Website Payments
Enter the Return URL.
Click "Save."
How Auto Return Works:
* If the buyer pays with a PayPal account, they are automatically taken back to the site.
* If the buyer pays with the Credit Card Option, they are taken to the receipt page where PayPal gives them the chance to print out a receipt. This is a legal requirement. After that, the buyer must click on the "Return to Merchant" link in order to return to the site.
Notes: The Credit Card Option or PayPal Account Optional is turned on by default for new PayPal Premiere and Business accounts. With PayPal Account Optional turned off, people without PayPal accounts must sign up for a PayPal account. They can pay by credit card, but they must agree to sign up for a PayPal account before completing their transactions and making their payments. Only Premiere or Business accounts have PayPal Account Optional in their account profiles. With Personal accounts, the checkout experience is as if PayPal Account Optional were turned off.
Another method would be to use PayPal's IPN feature along with Auto Return. This method does require additional programming skills. After the payment is processed, PayPal posts the transaction details to your IPN script. At this point, you could have your IPN script either send out an email with the item as an attachment, or an email that has a link to a secure page where the item can be downloaded from.
And there are third party Digital Goods Delivery Services that can do what you have in mind.
Regards,
skier
