It doesn’t really matter how much it costs to access data, it is still without question, a barrier to access. And by extension it deepens inequality.
A paywall that takes pocket change to open for someone in wealthy country may be no more than an inconvenience but that same pocket change, in another country, suddenly becomes a couple of hours work, or a days wage, or a week’s salary.
That information may be worth paying for. It might make life just a little bit easier. For the wealthy individual that pocket change suddenly made working a little bit more efficient and thus made their money go further, and their wealth increase.
For the poor individual that money needs to go on housing, or shoes, or baby food. The information behind that paywall seems like it could be important, or helpful, but it’s still out of reach.
So the gap between the these two individuals, in knowledge and in wealth, just expanded.
This is why information must to be free. That should be our starting point. And together, collectively, we should find solutions to achieve that aim.