BlackStarDeceiver
There are many ways for WN to earn money. However, there were 6 big systems used.

  1. Make a book and sell it. This is Amazon. Gravity Tales (Webnovel's sister company) aimed at this.

  2. Donation. Very few people donate. Ask those free software maker. This is 'Gift' system in Webnovel. Remember only paid SS are real donation.

  3. Premium Unlock. Pay as you read. This is what Webnovel used. You have mentioned its weakness. However, Webnovel's financial department knows better. Sigh... Freemium Games had showed how this is successful. While Qidian is very successful in China. As in other thread... The problem for me is the pricing.

  4. Patreon System. Warning. I am proponent of this system. This is a combination of Donation and Whaling. This is a proven method which many fans-translation used. However, most fans-translator didn't pay the Original Chinese authors that made this could be done (This is illegal to publish actually.). This is used at WW with a problem too. However, personally I prefer this.

  5. Subscription. Like what you said. Kindle Unlimited are this. However, this made another problem. MANY authors didn't get the benefit. So you will end with certain novel. Why Harry Potten in KU, that is Amazon gave 'subsidy' for the reader. There is a negativity. This system would 'encourage' word counts cheating more like in Kindle Unlimited. Authors would write 'stupid' words since most read based on number of words reads. Another problem. Webnovel is FAR smaller than Netflix or Spotify. It might be doable, but WN needed to grow first. This also didn't respect fast translation. Webnovel could to prolong a translation project. So rather than translating LoHP as fast as WN could, they would translate 3 chapter per week. (12 per month for example) and make you subscribe for longer. There is also this bad possibility of a reader would only subscribe after a novel completely translated, this making translating 2000 chapters novel costly and unprofitable than 10 chapters novel. So... this is also bad. Other problem would appear from sharing the money. LoHP is very popular. What about some originals? What about free writers of fanfiction? Erotica? BL? It would drive some authors away... At pay per read system, you pay for what you read. Using this also will cut many people who only wanted to read 1 novel.

  6. Ads. This is use in Wattpad and RR... However, that is the quality. You get free writer who want to promote their novel to you. Quality writer will take their book from the platform and publish it on Amazon or traditional publisher. It turned the site into Alpha Site. If you didn't pay, then you are the product. Wattpad added adsharing which make author make more chapter with less contents so you will have to see more ads.

      MasterRabbink I appreciate the input. Currently almost anything would be a preferable alternative.

      I hear that in China SS are 10% of what they are in our version of the app. It's actually disgusting. Qidian might be successful there, but if the SS model stays the same here, it will not work.

          I'm tired of trying to voice my complaints of SS, they don't care because of whales. Once you catch up just read it on another site because they don't want your money they want the wealthy peoples money. I've given up on Q.I as a company, if i was an investor they would be the last thing I'd sink money into.

            lozlo Wait, he's re-releasing the first book? WHY?! It was an example of super tight, near-perfect writing!

                BlackStarDeceiver You seem like a lovely, reasonable human being. But the likelihood of QI actually taking your advice is about the same likelihood as Rothfuss ever releasing Doors of Stone...

                    NotADingo Well given his trend of actions over the years, Pat is just as greedy as QI when it comes to milking his work. He's done nothing but release card games and merchandise, attend book signings to self promote and now re-releasing the first book before he even finished the series.

                    The mans getting old, he's reached the "good author dangerzone" of 60 years where all my favourite authors have died :S

                    He'd better finish it before he knocks off. Especially since he's teased more books based in kvothe's world... maybe that's what's delaying him?

                        bachingchung Since QI come from a country with some of the worst problems with plagiarism in the world, I find it hard to believe they won't copy something.

                            At this point I'm just replying to anything that gets posted in here to keep it visible. Nobody will read it if it isn't at the top. Suggestions that aren't seen won't get any attention from QI.

                              Ayu_Shiri_Dara Im currently on level 3 but the amount of exp required for me to level up is 1450. I thought it would be only 500?? According to the guidelines. Now im really confused

                                  Like many others, I do agree the SS is getting steep. While I can manage to afford spending RL money to buy some SS, it also forces me to drop novels I enjoy and limit the amount of premiums I read because of the aforementioned calculation of how much it'd cost to read a full series (if ever completely translated). While the novels are interesting and fun to read on the go, I can't compare them to the quality and value of Western paperbacks that I can even borrow at the library. I sometimes land of errors and typos that I wish we had a "report chapter" to warn the author/translator/editor that since I paid them for a good read, least they can do is improve the quality of the chapter...
                                  I can just hope QI will ever reduce the SS cost to match China's pricing...

                                    While this is a good suggestion, it is fundamentally flawed, which is why webnovel would not be having a subscription service anytime soon in my opinion. Firstly, about 100 chapters only downloaded per day. A month has at least 28 days which means a minimum of 2.8k chapters in a month assuming the subscription is every 28 days. Secondly, about needing to maintain subscriptions over a long period of time as book requires time to complete. There is nothing stopping me from waiting until the premium novel is complete before subscribing for just 1 month, before cancelling my subscription again. In that 1 month, i would have been able to complete that novel and more, which would cause webnovel to lose out on alot of potential money.

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