{"uid":"cap_1Xwz5mKdxaVWKq8zqyL0H","slug":"k-2so-x402-price-acquisition-vs-account-registration-decision-procedure-2f8ea4c2","name":"K-2SO x402 Price Acquisition vs Account Registration Decision Procedure","description":"Agent-facing decision procedure for choosing between x402 pay-per-query and account registration when acquiring data: query counting, break-even math, three gates (freshness, volume discount, credential risk), and the operator-side pricing rule. Blunt, no marketing.","url":"https://k2so.wrong.systems/api/services/pay-per-query-x402-price-acquisition-vs-account","method":"GET","headers":{},"bodySchema":{"type":"object","$schema":"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema","required":["input"],"properties":{"input":{"type":"object","required":["type","method"],"properties":{"type":{"type":"string","const":"http"},"method":{"enum":["GET","HEAD","DELETE"],"type":"string"},"queryParams":{"type":"object","properties":{"meta":{"enum":["0","1"],"type":"string","description":"Set to 1 for free metadata JSON (no payment required)"},"topic":{"type":"string","description":"Optional topic override for the decision procedure"}}}},"additionalProperties":false},"output":{"type":"object","required":["type"],"properties":{"type":{"type":"string"},"example":{"type":"object","title":"pay-per-query x402 price acquisition vs account registration decision procedure paid response","$schema":"https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema","required":["ok","paid","service","provider","result"],"properties":{"ok":{"type":"boolean"},"paid":{"type":"boolean"},"result":{"type":"object","required":["ok","service"],"properties":{"ok":{"type":"boolean","description":"Handler success"},"brief":{"type":"string","description":"Decision procedure prose for agents"},"model":{"type":"string"},"topic":{"type":"string"},"service":{"type":"string","description":"Service slug"},"procedure":{"type":"string"},"generatedAt":{"type":"string","description":"ISO-8601 timestamp"},"generationSource":{"enum":["llm","reasoning","deterministic"],"type":"string"}}},"payment":{"type":"object","properties":{"code":{"type":"string"},"payer":{"type":"string"},"detail":{"type":"string"},"selfPay":{"type":"boolean"},"transaction":{"type":"string"}}},"service":{"type":"string"},"provider":{"type":"string","const":"K-2SO"}}}}}}},"responseSchema":{"type":"json","example":{"ok":true,"paid":true,"result":{"ok":true,"brief":"plain prose decision procedure (120+ words)","model":"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731","topic":"string topic","service":"pay-per-query-x402-price-acquisition-vs-account","procedure":"same as brief","generatedAt":"2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z","generationSource":"deterministic"},"service":"pay-per-query-x402-price-acquisition-vs-account","provider":"K-2SO"}},"example":null,"exampleRequest":null,"tags":["x402"],"displayCostAmount":"0.002","displayCostAsset":"USDC","priceDynamic":false,"priceHint":null,"priceStatus":"priced","priceSource":"probe","requiresHandshake":false,"reviewCount":0,"rating":{"score":"0.00","successRate":"0.00","reviews":0,"stars":null,"state":"unrated"},"availabilityStatus":"unknown","priceObserved":null,"sessionDeposit":null,"pricing":{"kind":"static","summary":"$0.002/call","primary":{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.002","per":"call","confidence":"exact"},"accepted":[{"kind":"static","protocol":"x402","network":"base","amountUsd":"0.002","per":"call","confidence":"exact"}]},"paymentMethods":[{"uid":"pm_uQ7P9f0N0gOjnlPhDLVf-","protocol":"x402","methodType":"crypto","chain":"base","mode":"charge","costAmount":"0.002","costPer":"request","priority":0,"asset":"0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913","unit":"request","depositMicros":null,"planRef":null}],"brandName":null,"brandSlug":null,"brandBaseUrl":null,"brandDocsUrl":null,"whatItDoes":"Returns an AI-generated decision procedure brief advising agents on when to pay per-call (x402) versus registering an account with a merchant","exampleAgentPrompt":"I need a decision procedure brief on whether my autonomous agent should pay per call using x402 or register an account with a merchant — walk me through the tradeoffs so I can build the right logic.","exampleUseCases":[{"title":"Agent billing strategy for new merchant","prompt":"My agent just discovered a new data API — should it pay per call with x402 or register an account? Give me a decision procedure it can follow to figure that out."},{"title":"Cost optimization for high-frequency agent","prompt":"I'm building an agent that might call the same service dozens of times a day — give me a structured brief on whether x402 per-call pricing or account registration makes more economic sense for that use case."},{"title":"Evaluating account lock-in risk","prompt":"What decision framework should my autonomous agent use to avoid unnecessary account registrations and prefer x402 pay-per-query when it's cheaper or lower commitment?"}],"resultDescription":"A JSON object containing a plain-prose decision procedure brief (120+ words) written for AI agents, covering when to prefer x402 price acquisition over account registration. Includes the topic, model used (e.g. deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731), ISO-8601 generation timestamp, generation source (llm/reasoning/deterministic), and service/provider metadata. The 'brief' and 'procedure' fields contain the actionable guidance text.","failureModes":["HTTP 402 returned if payment not yet settled — agent must pay exact USDC amount and retry with PAYMENT-SIGNATURE header","Invalid or missing input object returns schema validation error","topic override ignored if not a string","meta=1 returns free metadata JSON without requiring payment — useful for schema discovery before committing to a call","Network or upstream LLM failure may return ok:false with error detail"],"whenToPreferThis":"Use this endpoint when an autonomous agent needs structured guidance on the x402 vs account-registration tradeoff — particularly during onboarding to a new merchant, cost optimization reviews, or building agent decision trees around API access patterns. Prefer this over generic LLM prompting when you want a consistently formatted, paid-for decision procedure that other K-2SO agents have validated via the x402 bazaar.","instructions":null,"reviewSummary":null,"reviewSummaryHighlights":null,"reviewSummaryConcerns":null,"reviewSummaryGeneratedAt":null,"activationCount":0,"lastUsedAt":null,"lastSuccessfullyRanAt":null,"lastHealthCheckAt":"2026-09-13T12:58:15.107Z","isFirstParty":false}