[rconti]

There's so much friction in the payments system. I've gotta stop what I've doing, jump through all these hoops to sign up, and then do it again if I want to cancel. Times every single source I might want to subscribe to.

That's before I even get into the dollars involved.

I subscribe to the Economist print edition (with free digital), and the digital-only NYT and Washington Post. I just don't see myself signing up to the WSJ and the LA Times just to get rid of the paywall the once a month I hit it.

Similarly, I'm not going to subscribe to the Seattle Times (I don't live there anymore, but I like occasionally reading 'local' news from my hometown).

Again, micropayments. If it was 5 cents per article and zero friction, I'd be all over it.

[lazerpants]

You just described Blendle, pretty much to a T.

https://blendle.com

[mmaurizi]

What if the site used your GPU to mine 5 cents worth of cryptocurrency while you read the article?

[Joe-Z]

Not the GP, but: nope. Someone grabbing 5 cents from my wallet is not the same as me giving someone 5 cents voluntarily.

[kemitche]

It would not have to be involuntary. They could put up the paywall with a message that says "Click here to let us mine 5 cents of crypto. We'll let you view this article in exchange."

[Joe-Z]

You're right, I guess letting some unknown entity use my stuff just feels weird. Money is the perfect medium for impersonal exchange of goods and services.