Yes, excellent write-up on this topic. Definitely plaguing Steemit. I think it would have been valuable to get this issue sorted out before SMT launch but I'm not holding my breath.
I think that as this issue persists that it will contribute heavily to burn-out. Maybe not in regions where minuscule USD payouts exchange for higher values but definitely in the developed countries where soon people will have other choices (EOS competitor [at some point] and potential crypto adoption by established platforms).
I experimented with vote buying in the first few months and didn't like the trade off - so I don't use it. I thought I was building a legitimate organic following (in fact, my follower count still climbs faster here with minimal efforts compared to other social channels) but my payouts per article have languished. I don't believe it to be solely a result of the fluctuating Steem/SBD price evaluations either.
I think it would be great if somehow views played a heavier factor in the payment algorithm because it's rough seeing articles that are trash with legit payouts that have essentially no original content or actual views. meanwhile, some of us are actively promoting our posts on other social networks. If the rewards are going to be skimmed by bots and gravitate toward pennies over time, might as well just build a legit following on other platforms like Medium where money never factors in.
Thanks for posting