> Getting stuff for free kills markets.
Yes, 100% this. Doctorow wants competition, wants to avoid lock-in, but how do you get competition and avoid lock-in when the market won't financially support many competitors? That's where paying for stuff is essential.
The attention economy is biased toward the big players. They can "make it up in volume", whereas smaller businesses can't.
Getting stuff for free kills markets. Waiting for a decent legal system, clutching all your money in tight fists, kills markets.
Sure, don’t give monopolists more money than you have to. But pay for services as much as you can. Even if only 1/100 paid services can resist monopoly, it’s a huge success. If you don’t pay they might not exist.