[HCoop-Discuss] comments on payment schemes

[Nathan Kennedy]

1. I think any scheme dependent on members voluntarily paying more or 
less based on willingness, and not usage or some other factor, is a 
terrible idea.  Granted it is very nice if someone does make a one-off 
donation, but we should not institutionalize it as a way of doing 
business.  HCoop is not a charity, and members should not feel that 
their dues are gifts.  Essentially anyone paying more than the minimum 
required "share" would be subsidizing everyone else's service.  This 
would also create undue pressure on members to pay more dues lest they 
be a "bad" member, or to give deference to users paying high shares 
because they are "patrons."  I think we should assess dues on rational 
basis, and members should be required to pay them and no more, large or 
small, and there should be no pressure whatsoever to give more.  This is 
the only way to run a business, even a cooperative business. 

2. I would like to reiterate that I think it would be a big mistake to 
enforce equal dues and equal services for every member, and I think 
Terrence is spot-on here.  Our capacity is large, and some members have 
much greater need than other members.  It is only logical that we should 
assess dues based on actual usage, just as every single web-hosting 
business out there does.  Remember, if we cannot compete with the 
thousands of other web hosting services out there on the basic 
requirements of price and service, our co-op is doomed.  Every 
web-hosting service either offers multiple plans priced according to 
resource limits, or according to actual metered usage.

It is unflexible and unfair to offer a one-size-fits all plan, having 
users who barely use HCoop at all pay the same rates and subsidizing 
heavy users serving many gigs of media file monthly.  It is also 
economically unsustainable, because it will mean that these users will 
be forced to our cheaper competitors who provide a more rational pricing 
scheme.

-ntk