> So the argument is, that ‘because Google Bot can read the content for free, then I should be allowed to do so too’? This seems like a pretty week excuse for bypassing a paywall. I think the reason we have annoyances like ‘please sign up for our news letters’ is that news sites are struggling to make money. A service like 12ft.io is only making the situation worse.

Yes, because I will subscribe to your site because I want to read one article on it. Next, supermarket wants to sell me a caw instead of carton of milk I came for.