"Amazon is providing a valuable service by having a place where people can easily share and read each other's reviews, and they don't exactly force anyone to buy the product from them afterwards, so what's wrong with them taking a cut from it?"
I never said there was anything wrong with it. I just said I wouldn't contribute to a for-profit site without getting paid.
"don't you benefit from other people posting reviews?"
I do benefit from other people posting reviews. But, just like Amazon doesn't force me to buy from them, I'm not forcing the reviewers to review for Amazon, nor do I force Amazon to make the reviews available to me.
"And if so, is it really smart to lose those benefits just to avoid making Amazon or IMDB richer?"
I'm not trying to avoid making Amazon or IMDB richer. I'm just saying that if they want me to contribute to a for-profit site, they should pay me.
I never said there was anything wrong with it. I just said I wouldn't contribute to a for-profit site without getting paid.
"don't you benefit from other people posting reviews?"
I do benefit from other people posting reviews. But, just like Amazon doesn't force me to buy from them, I'm not forcing the reviewers to review for Amazon, nor do I force Amazon to make the reviews available to me.
"And if so, is it really smart to lose those benefits just to avoid making Amazon or IMDB richer?"
I'm not trying to avoid making Amazon or IMDB richer. I'm just saying that if they want me to contribute to a for-profit site, they should pay me.