LOL. Nope, it's way more than half a cent for a thousand shares. IB charges a penny a share for the first 500 shares, then half a cent for the remaining shares. So to trade a thousand shares:
$5.00 for the first 500 shares
$2.50 for the remaining 500 shares
--------
$7.50 total per trade for 1000 shares.
There is a $10/month trading fee if you don't trade much. That's about it. They do not charge for ecn fees or anything. It's been a while since I traded stock through IB, but I don't think they've changed much.
Why do you care, since you will pay this fee whoever you trade through. It is charged when you sell your stock. I believe it is about 1/15000 of the sale amount. Will this stop you from trading?