Buying is an abstraction of the idea (I pay in advance instead of waiting for tokens to accumulated for held back amount), probably something like staking would be more accurate.
Example:
Currently the vetting process is something like:
The new node is being run for a couple of months without payout to be sure that it is in for the long run. The payout amount is held back then returned after it has payed for the costs.
My suggestion is to extend this model, by depositing that held back amount up-front so I don’t waste my time for being tested for audits. If the vetted node is not available, then I lose the deposited amount to compensate for network health and repair costs as usual (same without graceful exit).
The reason why I am willing to “pay” for reputation is that I already know that I am in for the long run and I already have a successfully vetted node running for more than a year, and I can guarantee the same reliability. I am also willing to risk some amount to prove it and start earning earlier. During the vetting period, the network is not supplying the new node with a full bandwidth and data amount not to risk too much but after that the node starts to fill up.
The maintainers of the network has to come up with a solution about depositied amount, time to return periods and percents to incentivise people to use that feature.
Currently the vetting period is a limiting factor for scaling the network up as waiting months to prove reliability is too long and wasting time, bandwidth and unused storage space. Allow that time to be replaced with money, while not risking overall network health.
If you don’t agree with this model, then please don’t comment. I don’t need opposing ideas, just constructive ones to get it done!
Thanks