What's with the new Patreon fee? Thoughts & mitigation

I received an email yesterday -- as did you, today, about Patreon restructuring their fees such that:

• Starting 18-Dec, you (patrons) will now have to pay a transaction fee of 2.9%+$0.35 *per pledge*
• Creators no longer shoulder that transaction fee, *supposedly* increasing our income

Patreon's official FAQ is here: https://patreon.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005631963

And their blog post: https://blog.patreon.com/updating-patreons-fee-structure/

As a creator and a patron, I have a couple qualms with this:

• First, there was nothing wrong with the current system.  I happily shouldered the transaction fee for all of you, and would do so if the new system gave me the option
• Fee aggregation is gone.  Instead of paying one transaction fee that gets spread out to reduce the overall cost on all sides, the transaction fee just got multiplied by the number of pledges you have
• In essence, Patreon just made transactions 100% less efficient
• This came with zero notice, without prior consultation, which I felt was disrespectful to both creators and patrons.  And right before the holidays too, when we're middle of wrapping up projects for a much-anticipated rest.  I didn't need this piled onto my shoulders!

This article on VentureBeat sums it up: https://venturebeat.com/2017/12/07/everyone-hates-patreons-new-fee/

I noticed 5 patrons have already dropped off my campaign today in protest of the new fees, hence the writing of this post.  So I would like to ask all of you for your feedback on the following mitigation strategies:

I am considering reducing the post-18th-Dec pledge levels to match their current levels.  Therefore:

• $1.00 stays at $1.00 -- it's the minimum Patreon requirement, so this will be charged $1.38
• $3.00 becomes $2.57
• $10.00 becomes $9.37

$1 level patrons: Since I cannot reduce the pledge level to $0.63, I would like to know whether you would discontinue your patronage here, and whether you would subscribe to a new Paypal $1.00/month recurring subscription that pays directly to me?

Poll: https://www.strawpoll.me/14574863

1. I would continue using Patreon with the new fee

2. I would discontinue using Patreon and subscribe to the new Paypal recurring payment

3. I would discontinue using Patreon but would like to have another contribution option (please elaborate in comments)

$3+ level patrons: What do you think of the above pledge adjustments?

Poll: https://www.strawpoll.me/14574873

1. I don't think it's necessary to adjust the levels

2. I appreciate the reduction and would adjust my patronage to match the new levels

My current strategy until 18-Dec is to wait and see if all the noise we are making will pressure Patreon to backpedal on the new fee structure.  I emailed them feedback.  If you feel this affects you negatively, I encourage you to do the same.

In the meantime, I am going to prototype a subscription system on tigerknight.com that is not reliant on Patreon.  I actually have all the pieces in place already... account access, WIP area, etc.; all I need is to attach a subscription post area and commenting system.  What *was* supposed to be a weekend to rest has now turned into work...

Anyway, if you feel compelled to leave Patreon because of the new fee structure, I will not hold you back.  But I encourage you to wait until 18-Dec to see how the situation plays out.  And if you have any other suggestions, please let me know!

- A stressed-out, headdesking Jan