check this comment on the original SV thread.

https://steemit.com/steemit/@marcgodard/steemit-s-free-voting-bot-for-everyone#@sigmajin/re-marcgodard-steemit-s-free-voting-bot-for-everyone-20160921t011837023z

and marcgoodards reply.

At the time it was initially advertised, it was advertised as a for-free service. The people who signed up between then and the daily vote posts were, apparently, given the same opt-out option SV now proposes for his "guild".

Though i suppose one could argue that it's at least somewhat different in that, even though the service was advertised as free, there was always the "fine print" in the tos .