Why I want steemit.com to charge new users $15 for account creation to new users
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/online_payment-2.jpg)
So I realized that my last post did not really explain the business-logic behind my proposal, so let me do atonement by writing a specific post about why charging new people for accounts is good for everybody.
We are currently 100,000+ accounts, if we start charging $15 from now we will make:
- $1,5 million real dollarsfor the next 100,000 accounts
- $15 million real dollars for the next 1 million accounts
And these real dollars will of course go to purchase real steem from the market, creating real demand for steem to power up new accounts. Once that is implemented, Steemit becomes an income generator, an asset!
People have suggested lower and higher account-creation fees. @noganoo says $5 should be enough, while @inertia thinks $99 for a "lifetime membership on steemit" would be attractive.
I'd opt for a kind of package-deal: the account creator can choose from $5, $10 or $25 and gets double that value in Steem on his account.
This way a gift element remains to get new users, but they are also motivated to invest some real money. That will make them value their account more.
I like it :)
sounds good, but then risks crashing the price on exchanges as you can effectively buy half price Steem by registering.
If the gift goes straight to steem power it can't crash the price.
Right now, you get 100% free Steem by registering. About $5 worth of Steem.
I got bored and bought $65 worth of extra steem power. Not sure what for though... ;)
yes infact I wrote in another post that the free giveaway should end.
Let the market decide how much a new account is worth.
@neoxian I can support that. Absolutely. As long as FREE is not an option of course :)
free would already be an improvement on the current system where people actually get paid 5$ (worth of Steem) to open a new account, and it's beeen abused by bot nets and sweat shops. I think we can all agree that has to stop.
That's already how it works.
this is interesting.
steemit inside out.
this would change steemits entering mechanisms recognizable.
on the one side this maybe could have some positive effects for refunding future content. and i can imagine it could had an effect for content quality managment.
(motivation throughout payment - spam gets expensive but maybe more serious, etc.)
But.
on the other side this would mean changing parts of steemits ideological backrounds.
the community could lose some content because of a more exclusive access.
and steemit wouldnt be finance barrier free anymore.
Free registration is one of the most notable facts about steemit.
This is would be a fascinating scenario.
I guess this could have effects in both directions but its hard to estimate the actual outcome.
If I had been charged $15 (or anything) I would never have given it a second glance. I suspect than no one else would either.
Yet here you are - and I can see you have made a lot more then $15 on your posts, so it would have been worth it for you. Free is just bad for business imo. Why don´t facebook give away free FB shares to their users for example?
Yet here I are. I'm going to 'power up' another $50 tonight which will bring my SP to over $600. It didn't cost me a dime (I didn't HAVE a discretionary dime)...all it took was a lot of work.
IF I'd had to pay $15 then, I wouldn't have the $275 (guesstimated account value) that I have now.
Here I are.
I expect the value of steem to increase to what it was ($4), In fact, with the coming economic crash, I expect all crypto currencies to increase in value.
So here I are.
From the inside that sounds totally reasonable. From the outside, it's enough of a 'Ponzi' red flag that we won't hit 200k until 2030.
You have to be joking. Another obstacle to an active member? How to kill a community...in 1, 2, 3...
The average person doesn't now about steemit yet. We don't even have what is known as a critical mass awakening yet, which is 5% of the public or 15,945,000 people. I think you would be killing the momentum we are building. I am still trying to get my friends who are not computer savvy to try this out, and if they have to pay to join they are absolutely 100% not going to do so. I think this is a good idea but save it for a much much later time. This is still the "Beta" version. Once this is in it's final form and their is millions of users then we should start talking about this idea. Peace bro.
With the new account rate and active user rate as it is (and even worse when taking into account fake accounts) I don't yet think this is the right move.
If they had this from the start though, things would have been a lot different.
@fyrstikken, I like the market deciding. You have great ideas!
I don't think it will happen even though there is an actual cost to account creation. I think the worry would be it would scare people away and it would give the anti Steemit "ponzi" people ammunition.
That said I think it would be fair if not popular.
Another alternative would be to make it so that new accounts need to buy $15 worth of Steem and power it up.
That would both create demand for Steem and increase the amount being powered up - hence reduce the the liquid Steem on the market.
but when it is "FREE" people say "It is too good to be true" :D
Each account actually cost something - it is just being paid for by someone else - sponsored accounts from the faucet, did you know that?
It does cost people "something". They have to authenticate with their Facebook or Reddit account, solve captchas, etc. I do think paying for an account instead with Bitcoin/altcoins should be an option though - many cryptocurrency enthusiasts would prefer this over authenticating with their social accounts (which they may not even have). One member of the local Blockchain Meetup group got irate when he found out you have to use Facebook or Reddit to get an account and swore he'd never use Steemit for this reason. I know ANONSTEEM exists and is great but new users won't figure that out.
Anyway, regarding the cost of a new account from the faucet - is this the @steemit account with the four million steem burning a hole in its pocket? http://steemwhales.com/
I you could elaborate on that faucet aspect a bit more I think it would help us new to Steemit to better understand the account creation cost in the first place..
I did understand there was a cost, but I thought it more of a mining resource type cost, I know my friend got her account from a well known Steemit member who haad offered to creat accounts on youtube, but I think it only had 4 steem power in it...
Now I see anonasteem and a Russian selling accounts, it's very confusing for us newbies...
Thanks.
Of course. It costs 3 steem each. I know that. I'm not personally against it but you know what certain quarters of the crypto community are like - they cry scam at the slightest thing - even when they know there is a reason for it.
New accounts get 10 Steem these days. The ones created through the site with Facebook or Reddit verification, that is.
OK I didn't know that. Thanks. Why has it gone up BTW? Is it linked to the price?
Not sure why it went up. My guess is the same as yours, because of the price (of Steem).
that sounds like a much better idea, but then we need to show them that there is a difference of their 15$ account to an 0$ account.
Well you could make it so that they need to pay $15 before they can post. Otherwise they can just comment and upvote.