First, 40$/100DL isn't a scam, really. Unless you prove me wrong, you should say why and how it is scam, because you are only counting copyrighted material, like it is the only thing that exists.
Forcing users to buy premiums comparing to RS:
WU & FSC = 2 and 1 GB for free users respectively.
RS = 200MB when they were starting
WU & FSC waiting time between 2 links =15 to 20 mins
RS = 600 minutes
WU & FSC speeds for free users = 300 - 400kb/s ( also 30kb/s for some users, but not FSC or WU fault, it's because of crappy peering from DC to other ISPs, and carriers)
RS = 128kb/s
Take in note, that RS, when started in 2006, and was 1 year old in 2007, could't compare to FSC and WU in any aspect. Neither they had so much traffic, neither they gave awards, neither their speed was good at all. Nothing was good, when RS was 1 year old. But I love to see how people are comparing FSC and RS now, like they started at the same time. FSC is light year away from RS, what it was when it was rapidshare.de
Get your facts straight.
Also, when RS was 1 year old, there was maybe 50 forums, sharing files trough filehost.
Now, you probably have more than 100.000 forums, blogs, and what not. Traffic is probably more than few thousands times bigger.
Let me break it for you: 128kb/s 200MB every ten hours... You couldn't possibly download more than 500mb a day...
With FSC, or WU, you can download 1GB every 15 minutes, after your last download, with 400kb/s...that gives you possibility to download 1GB in 45 minutes, pause 15 minutes, so, 24GB a day. That's just one thing...
Basically, it's not comparable.
And Btw, spam is normal thing, RS was faced with huge amount of spam, when RS2RS script was written.... same, exactly same thing is happening, when RS had reward system, nothing is different