It should be 100% free for all features...the subscription model is more like Patreon meets Medium, where money is pooled and shared w/ contributors who provide the most value.
Except unlike Medium there is no paywall. No limits on views/etc...
Even with those fake internet points, Stackoverflow has the problem 0f voting ring, throw money in, and they will only get worse. Then your focus moves away from building content to optimizing against voting rings.