This isn't a new idea, and I've seen similar is some old/small forums.
Usually it gets refunded after a certain time if you weren't banned. The idea isn't to actually charge, but to make it unprofitable to spam. If your amortized profit is $0.01 per spam post, or less, then having to pay a dollar, or really any money is a big show-stopper.
I don't think the point is what they are charging, but the fact they are charging anything. Probably more interesting to them is the amount who don't create an account when presented with a payment screen.
I operate a service a with an option that charges $1/month. We end up netting about 42 cents per subscription, but really the exercise is more about making the service available to people who might not otherwise be able to afford it than it is about a cash grab.
It's all pretty automated at that level. To be clear, it will likely never pay off the initial cost of implementation, but the volume is low and we can afford it. Also it pays off as a component of our funnel since about 20% of these users end up upgrading at some point.
> Web Monetization provides an open, native, efficient, and automatic way to compensate creators, pay for content, and support crucial web infrastructure.
> Why Now?: Until recently, there hasn't been an open, neutral and cost-efficient protocol for transferring money. Interledger provides a simple, interoperable, and currency-agnostic method for the transfer of small amounts of money.
> Web Monetization is being proposed as a W3C standard at the Web Platform Incubator Community Group.
W3C Interledger Protocol works with any type of ledger.
> The WebMonetization spec [4] and docs [5] specifies the `monetization` <meta> tag for indicating where supporting browsers can send payments and micropayments:
As someone who works in the antibot space for a FAANG, this type of solution can actually be very effective initially. Bad adversaries will adjust their TTP's (Tactics, techniques and procedures) accordingly - I wouldn't be surprised if ATO (account take overs) rise to compensate for paywalling on new accounts.
I really respect the dedication to removing the huge problem of bots in the social space and I feel the ripple effect could be tremendous if a big dent is made.
Usually it gets refunded after a certain time if you weren't banned. The idea isn't to actually charge, but to make it unprofitable to spam. If your amortized profit is $0.01 per spam post, or less, then having to pay a dollar, or really any money is a big show-stopper.