Hmm. Would I rather pay a fee every year for my domain name or only if I happen to need to change my name servers, contact info or account password. Perhaps more realistically, pay the host before a transfer or early termination. Yes, getting started might be free, but that just makes accidental lock in easier. Life happens, changes happen. Free should be free, is all I'm saying. Makes for a better internet. Maybe browser vendors should offer free SSL certs, or promote pinning self-signed ones somehow? ;-)