The Attention Subsidy: Why ‘Free’ Charging Is Failing

The Argument in Brief

The recent divestment of Shell’s retail charging network (specifically the ad-supported Volta units) is not a failure of electric vehicle (EV) demand. It is the long-overdue death of a flawed business model that prioritized digital impressions over physical utility. Drivers don’t want “free” charging that doesn’t work; they want dependable, reasonably priced energy that respects their time.

The Conventional Wisdom

For the last five years, it was believed that EV charging at malls and grocery stores would follow the “Google Model”: the service would be free to the consumer, subsidized by high-resolution digital advertisements on large, sleek kiosks. This “Destination Charging” was touted as the solution for “Garage Orphans” (people without home charging) and a way to increase mall “dwell time.” If you build a charger that feels like a billboard, the energy costs would be rounding errors in a massive marketing budget.

Why the Conventional Wisdom Fails

The ad-supported model failed because it ignored the fundamental physics of both energy and human behavior. You cannot power a 4,000-pound machine with 30-second trailers for a summer blockbuster. The “Attention Subsidy” was too small to cover the rising cost of industrial-grade electrons, and the chargers themselves were too slow to be anything more than a gimmick for most drivers.

Point 1: The Dwell-Time Disconnect

The most common “free” chargers are Level 2 units, adding roughly 20-25 miles of range per hour. If you go to the mall for a 45-minute shopping trip, you gain 15 miles of range. If the mall is 10 miles away, you have technically achieved a “net zero” trip, but only if you managed to snag one of the few working plugs. For most people, this isn’t a “charge”; it’s a distraction.

The common assumption that these chargers served as a perk for mall employees was also largely a myth. Enforced charge limits (often 60 to 120 minutes) ensured that even those on an eight-hour shift could never reach a full state of charge without repeatedly returning to the parking lot to restart the session, a logistical impossibility for most workers. For the average consumer, the “mall charge” was a teaser that rarely delivered a meaningful tank.

Point 2: The ROI of an Eye

The math of ad-supported charging simply does not work in a high-interest-rate environment. In 2021, when capital was “free,” companies could burn money on kiosks. In 2026, the Cost Per Thousand impressions (CPM) yield for a parking lot billboard is roughly $0.50 per hour. Meanwhile, the electricity required to provide a “meaningful” charge costs the operator upwards of $2.00 per hour in many retail markets.

$\text{Profit/Loss per Hour} = \text{Ad Revenue} (\$0.50) - \text{Energy Cost} (\$2.00) = -\$1.50$

Shell didn’t just divest some digital assets; they realized they were losing money every time a driver plugged in. After acquiring Volta for $169 million in early 2023 (gaining ownership of over 3,000 chargers) the company spent two years watching the Opex of maintaining integrated screens and charging hardware outpace the revenue from both ads and electrons. By August 2025, Shell decided to dismantle the network entirely, signaling the final failure of the ad-supported experiment.

Point 3: The Reliability Tax

When your “customer” is an advertiser and not the person plugging in the car, you have no financial incentive to keep the plug working. If the screen is on and the ad is playing, the operator gets paid, regardless of whether the car is actually receiving a single electron. This led to a plague of “Ghost Chargers”: beautifully lit kiosks that provided zero power.

The Evidence

The market is currently bifurcating, and the “Free” tier is being deleted in favor of specialized, paid networks that actually work.

Network Type	Target Utilization	Typical Rate (Jan 2026)
Home (L2)	95% (Overnight)	$0.15/kWh
Tesla Supercharger	65% (High-Speed)	$0.35–$0.50/kWh
3rd Party Fast (EVgo)	30% (Premium)	$0.45–$0.60/kWh
Shell/Volta (Legacy)	<10% (Retail)	FREE (Divested)

Evidence 1: Shell confirmed the dismantling of the Volta network and the divestment of its media network assets to Jolt in late 2025. This followed the 2023 acquisition of Volta Inc. for $169 million, where Shell purchased the physical charging units while maintaining site leases with retail property owners.

Evidence 2: Tesla’s Supercharger network delivered 6.7 TWh of energy in 2025 because it focuses on a single metric: uptime. People pay for the convenience of knowing the “handshake” between car and charger will work in under five seconds.

The Counterarguments

”Free charging is essential for low-income adoption.”

Analysis: Free charging that is broken 40% of the time and adds only 15 miles of range is not an “equity” tool; it’s a frustration trap. A better model for low-income drivers is moderately priced, high-reliability community charging, utility-style pricing with an ad-subsidized “discount” tier, but never “free” at the cost of repair budgets.

”Malls need these chargers to compete with online shopping.”

Analysis: Malls need dependable chargers. A driver who arrives at a mall with 10% battery and finds a broken “free” charger will leave immediately. A driver who finds a paid 150kW “Fast Hub” will stay for lunch while their car hits 80%.

A Real-World Example: The Mall vs. The Movie

Consider a typical weekend trip to “Galleria Mall” to watch a three-hour movie. You park at a free Shell/Volta charger. Over three hours, you might gain 60-75 miles of range. That is a decent result—until you realize the charger was time-limited to 60 minutes to prevent “parking squatters,” or that the plug was broken but the ad-screen was perfectly functional.

By contrast, a Tesla driver stops at a 250kW Supercharger in the same parking lot, plugs in for 15 minutes, gets a 200-mile boost, and then goes to the movie without worrying about their State of Charge. The Tesla driver paid $12 for the privilege, but they bought something Shell couldn’t provide: peace of mind.

What This Really Means

For Consumers

The era of “Free Lunch” charging is over. Expect to see “Free” plugs either disappear or be converted into paid assets. You should prioritize home charging and only use public infrastructure as a dependable utility, not a lifestyle perk.

For Companies

The move by Shell to dismantle the Volta network it bought for $169 million highlights the failure of “Integrated Energy” companies trying to play at being advertisers. Ownership of the physical hardware turned into a liability when the “Attention Subsidy” failed to cover the cost of maintaining it. If you aren’t a technology company first, you cannot manage a high-uptime charging network.

For the Industry

The “Middle Ground” is dead. Expect the charging landscape to settle into two categories: Cheap & Slow (Home/Work) or Expensive & Fast (On-the-go). The moderately slow “Retail” charger is an endangered species.

The Bigger Picture

This is the “Iridium Moment” for EV infrastructure. Like the satellite constellation of the 1990s, the early build-out was technically impressive but economically doomed because it was ahead of its time and built on the wrong financial foundations. Shell’s retreat isn’t a sign that EVs are over; it’s a sign that the amateur hour of the energy transition is ending.

The Road Ahead

1. The Subsidized Utility Model: Companies like Jolt are moving toward “reduced price” charging (e.g., $0.25/kWh) subsidized by ads, rather than “free.” This creates a budget for maintenance.
2. Vertical Integration: Expect more automakers to follow Tesla’s lead or join the IONNA consortium. Reliability happens when the person selling the car also cares about the fuel.
3. The ‘Garage Orphan’ Specialization: Urban areas will shift toward curbside Level 2 charging managed by utilities, where the cost is folded into your monthly power bill.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Drivers would gladly pay if the cost was equal to or competitive with Tesla’s rates. The reason third-party charging feels like a gamble in early 2026 is that prices of $0.50/kWh or higher make driving an EV more expensive per mile than a hybrid Toyota Camry. Charging at home isn’t just a matter of convenience; it is a protest against an industry that refuses to compete on dependability and price.

Final Thoughts

Shell’s divestment of the Volta ad-network is the end of the “Freebie” era. It proves that a battery is an industrial asset, not an advertising unit. Building a long-range future requires treating energy as a critical utility rather than a social media feed. Drivers don’t need a free charge; they need a plug that works every single time.

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