Its not a choice between a world of paywalls and a world of ads -- closed, for-paying-users services are going to exist whether or not ad-based services also exist. And, open services without distinct ads (which may themselves <i>be</i> ads, on some level) that are paid for by someone other than the direct user are going to exist.  The real question is in what circumstances, and to what extent, are services with intrusive ads disrupting the main content acceptable alternatives to those other two models, not an exclusive choice of a world with one model or a world with one of the other models.<p>&gt; I don&#x27;t really want the Web to turn into a giant Apple Store, where every link, I must face the cognitive burden of paying for it before I know that I even want it.<p><i>Life</i> is that way: even with &quot;free with ads&quot; content, you are accepting a cost for the content before you can be certain that the benefit justifies it. (Heck, there&#x27;s an opportunity cost even with &quot;free without ads&quot; content.)<p>If you just mean the friction of active choice with each click, well, even in a payment model you could create a system with configurable  passive thresholds and lumped periodic payments where the cognitive burden of an active purchase decision was avoided for people who preferred to do so.