Asymmetric Fragmentation: How Subscription-Based Monetization Fractures Creator Communities

This study examines how subscription-based monetization affects social dynamics in digital creator communities through the lens of Social Identity Theory (SIT). Using panel data from Bilibili and difference-in-differences analysis, our findings reveal that while subscriber interactions exhibit improved sentiment and engagement, the broader community suffers from reduced engagement and degraded interaction quality. We introduce the concept of asymmetric fragmentation to explain how subscription-based models simultaneously enhance insider solidarity and erode overall community engagement. We demonstrate that subscription-based access enhances interaction quality within the paying subscriber group but negatively impacts the numerically dominant non-subscriber group. These results contribute to creator economy literature by extending SIT to platform-driven economic stratification and highlighting the hidden trade-offs of monetization strategies.