A free market is individual market actors trading with no regulation, no? In that sense, Steemit is a synthetic, mini-“free market,” which is actually confined by many different rules and realities that make it more of a product on the market, than a real reflection of a free market itself.

There are early adopters and investors who own large shares and vast influence, a rigid template for how things work (the code) and parameters/guidelines for how steemit.com can be used.

This is very different from the open concept of “free trade” itself. Indeed, if the platform doesn’t meet market demand, it will fail. The free market itself, can never “fail” or “succeed” as the freedom to trade is simply a reality that can be suppressed or encouraged, but never erased.