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Most people who are reading Medium or are on the internet are broke or in massive debt (cough Millennials). They can barely afford rent and food. If you want

Most people who are reading Medium or are on the internet are broke or in massive debt (cough Millennials). They can barely afford rent and food. If you want to monetize you need to either make medium for baby-boomers or change your govt.

matthewcford 11y ago
People prioritise different things, I see homeless people with smartphones. We live in an information age, and people value information.
- wrong_variable 11y ago
  Do you think homeless people are homeless with smartphone because they value a smartphone MORE then housing ? Or is it because the cost of a smartphone is 1/100 of a month's rent in a shitty apartment. Or to put it in another way - they can afford a smartphone but cannot afford housing.
- makomk 11y ago
  Smartphones are incredibly cheap these days compared to the price of content. They've gone on sale for as little as $10, and you can easily pay that for just one month's subscription to one website.
- mtbcoder 11y ago
  What people seem to not value are the channels that produce information. Information has become ubiquitous, ephemeral and most often freely available through any other arbitrary channel. For pay walls to work, it's an all-or-nothing system.
  - wrong_variable 11y ago
    Not really. Information is more valuable then ever. I would rather pay 10 dollars for Netflix then torrent. But guess why I do not pay 10 dollars for Netflix ? Because Netflix is shit for me. Since I do not live in the US. The hassle of going to a torrent site and deal with porn ads is cheaper and better then streaming from Netflix. Since 10 dollar is 45 minutes of working as a programmer - I spend less then 10 minutes a month having to deal with porn ads. Its basic economics. Unless it takes me 45 minutes of porn ad watching I am not going to switch to Netflix - as simple as that. And guess why I get paid 10 dollars ? Due to the broken immigration Laws which gives employers an upper hand as I get deported as soon as I lose my job. Some of the basic needs of life - housing,food - costs me 1/4 of my salary. And I am at the upper end of the scale - most of my peers are working in coffee shops in shitty service jobs. Unless this basic calculus change - good luck monetizing selling articles on the web. -- from a frustrated millennial --
- soared 11y ago
  That is a classic example people repeat a lot. But think about it, if you had literally no money, no skills, no job, and a mental illness, how would you spend $100? A phone that provides you internet access and unlimited information and resources, or $100 for 2 nights in a hotel?

matthewcford 11y ago

People prioritise different things, I see homeless people with smartphones. We live in an information age, and people value information.

wrong_variable 11y ago
Do you think homeless people are homeless with smartphone because they value a smartphone MORE then housing ? Or is it because the cost of a smartphone is 1/100 of a month's rent in a shitty apartment. Or to put it in another way - they can afford a smartphone but cannot afford housing.
makomk 11y ago
Smartphones are incredibly cheap these days compared to the price of content. They've gone on sale for as little as $10, and you can easily pay that for just one month's subscription to one website.
mtbcoder 11y ago
What people seem to not value are the channels that produce information. Information has become ubiquitous, ephemeral and most often freely available through any other arbitrary channel. For pay walls to work, it's an all-or-nothing system.
- wrong_variable 11y ago
  Not really. Information is more valuable then ever. I would rather pay 10 dollars for Netflix then torrent. But guess why I do not pay 10 dollars for Netflix ? Because Netflix is shit for me. Since I do not live in the US. The hassle of going to a torrent site and deal with porn ads is cheaper and better then streaming from Netflix. Since 10 dollar is 45 minutes of working as a programmer - I spend less then 10 minutes a month having to deal with porn ads. Its basic economics. Unless it takes me 45 minutes of porn ad watching I am not going to switch to Netflix - as simple as that. And guess why I get paid 10 dollars ? Due to the broken immigration Laws which gives employers an upper hand as I get deported as soon as I lose my job. Some of the basic needs of life - housing,food - costs me 1/4 of my salary. And I am at the upper end of the scale - most of my peers are working in coffee shops in shitty service jobs. Unless this basic calculus change - good luck monetizing selling articles on the web. -- from a frustrated millennial --
soared 11y ago
That is a classic example people repeat a lot. But think about it, if you had literally no money, no skills, no job, and a mental illness, how would you spend $100? A phone that provides you internet access and unlimited information and resources, or $100 for 2 nights in a hotel?