This doesn't surprise me at all... Just like bots in games. Selling a service that benefits another. Its shady, but definitely believable.
Also, what if this is an actual viable way to "market" for an open source project?
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/over-31-million-fake-stars-on-github-projects-used-to-boost-rankings
Just trying to play a little devils advocate. Not saying that its ethical to do it, but if morals/ethics don't play a part in the decision, it could prove useful. Besides, I'd imagine that its already being extorted pretty heavily if there's that much competition for sellers, hah.