Yes, this is the main argument in Clay Shirky’s "The Case Against Micropayments" (2000) [1]. It holds up pretty well 20 years later.
Micropayments are not "pay $2 or $3 per month" (either flat-fee or average), there are plenty of successful examples of that. Micropayments are "pay $0.004 or $0.02 for reading this article or using this service now". As Shirky noted, the problem with micropayments are not the technology or transactions costs. The problem is that they require a huge amount of user time and attention, relative to the value of the item being bought. This has not changed in the past 20 years.
The Case Against Micropayments
“The problem with micropayments are not the technology or transactions costs. The problem is that they require a huge amount of user time and attention, relative to the value of the item being bought.”
Fuck. He’s right. And that’s a huge issue that can’t be fixed; no one wants to ponder all the time, as we already do that.
But! We definitely need to nurture independence, without corporations. With fairness in mind.
Maybe the government should absolutely take on that task. Brazil did it in 2019 with Pix, a very successful instant payment system 100% public-owned. Brazilians can pay 24/7 instantly anyone, any business, any bills. You can have up to five different accounts to pay for different things and all you need to login and pay is an email address, a phone number or a taxpayer number.
That’s what we want, and nothing else. C’mon ‘Murica.