Converting karma points to cash incentivizes behavior that maximizes cash return. This sets off a stampede to harvest attention in the most cost-efficient way - not a recipe for quality. Content becomes commodity and smells like spam. Cooperative communities are transformed into competitive groups that are motivated to raise barriers to entry to maintain maximum market share.
People willingly share experiences in online communities. They share, update and support elaborate how-to instructions and tools and lessons learned and a great deal of knowledge. Monitizing it all the way around short-circuits the network effect of widespread knowledge. It slows the velocity of its spread, dampens its growth, and creates another layer of middlemen between buyers and sellers.
Slashdot Mirror
That's a plausible scenario. Here's another.
Converting karma points to cash incentivizes behavior that maximizes cash return. This sets off a stampede to harvest attention in the most cost-efficient way - not a recipe for quality. Content becomes commodity and smells like spam. Cooperative communities are transformed into competitive groups that are motivated to raise barriers to entry to maintain maximum market share.
People willingly share experiences in online communities. They share, update and support elaborate how-to instructions and tools and lessons learned and a great deal of knowledge. Monitizing it all the way around short-circuits the network effect of widespread knowledge. It slows the velocity of its spread, dampens its growth, and creates another layer of middlemen between buyers and sellers.