You seem to have a lot of negativity - what's wrong with starting free to get a foot in the market? Also, being "on steroids" is and has always been a good thing. They also say that it's an "evolved" version of Instapaper.
Are you VC funded and have $12 million sitting in your bank account? Then go and try to grab your part of the market with giving things away.
Are you self funded/bootstrapped and are worrying about how to pay next month's rent? Better make sure you make some money soon. Giving stuff away for free won't help you much with that.