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Nobody is forced to pay anything. Paying consumers become investors in Hive. People want to monetize content here. This doesn't take anything away from those who aren't interested in monetizing content. They can still post freely. But in order to monetize content there must be money flowing in the door as well, not just out the door. Paying for content is normal human behavior. People tip and donate to creators all over the internet now. Why would investors 'invest' in a bunch of humans pushing buttons on the internet, if there's no money coming in the door involved? If this chain has plenty of consumers spending money on Hive, including purchasing the token itself, which creates demand for the token, the whole operation becomes attractive to wise investors.

Reddit still isn't profitable and yet I doubt it has any problems raising money. Internet-native investors look for engagement & growth above all else when investing in social, and expect to figure the rest out in the future.

To fuel engagement & growth, you want to ask as little as possible from users.

Money goes where value is, period. Even if that value is not tangible. Hive makes it tangible. It's a very interesting concept, and it is the future. Once there's enough quality (evidenced by engagement & growth), investors will come.