I think that balance + uptime would prove to be an excellent idea. Running a node does require time and money. I would gladly run 10 nodes.if the minimum was say 1000 coins. But that would mean 10 static ip plus ddos protection. Also depending on the services provided, bandwidth might become an issue, resulting in a bigger capital investment to run a node.
You really need to reward your nodes. They will form the backbone of your network. Especially nodes that will transmit massive amounts of data from filesharing and streaming audio/video/webcam.
I dont see room for pikers. In order to bring big projects to light, you need serious capital and infrastructure. Look at DRK. If you want to run a masternode, its around 5K USD. Why should Mantis be any different?
I can see how mantis will be different from other platforms. I have put on a position on this project and will inject more capital as more positive information is revealed.
We agree that yes MantisWeb's will form the backbone for all services and should be rewarded as such.
Hence the increase in interest etc, we are still tweaking things and changing things to make it more suitable and beneficial to run one.
We have looked at a minimum balance option but don't want to lock people out that can't afford to purchase enough Mantis to run one. We haven't ruled out this option as of yet though.
We want to make running a MantisWeb beneficial thay everyone that can wants to run one and we will post more details and changes on how rewards will be calculated as soon as we have stopped fiddling with them.