@davidr @atomicpoet @mveron I specifically asked how a mastodon instance can be used currently to directly profit off its users.
Those are walled-garden services that you have no option but to use if you want access to the platform.
If my current mastodon instance tries to monetize me, I can just move and still have the same overall access to the platform. That's the benefit of federation, and why the Fediverse isn't comparable to those platforms.
@byte @atomicpoet @mveron You can move right now. What if they decide to make that hard? Make exporting your data impossible or accessible only via arcane menus and paperwork?
"But the protocol!" Look at email and Microsoft. Once an organization starts using Exchange/Outlook, there's no way to use anything else.