RE: Does everything have to be free on the hive blockchain?

I totally agree with you that hive has an issue with retaining users. But we shouldn't think only about content creators as users. When I look at how Splinterlands evolved, they had to implement a system that you have to first invest before you can get rewards. It didn't prevent people from joining. Sometimes people don't appreciate what is for free. If they pay for it, they are probably more willing to try a second time. The beneficiary reward might be a solution. 3speak is doing it actively already, inleo as well. I didn't know about ecency.