Companies do need to generate revenue, but any product whose strengths in part came from the community that formed around it (and used it) then became a key part of the value of that product. As such, the community becomes an asset, and thus that ‘asset’ has a level of financial worth.
I don’t think it’s in any way easy taking a ‘free’ (or ‘freemium’) product and trying to increasingly monetise it, but respecting the community that in part made you is also not something to be dismissed. It was actually a move of a very similar nature that drove me from a Katalon alternative to Katalon (…although, they went one further and dropped full support for the platform that I was testing on, so not only did it become financially unviable, it became technically impossible).
Katalon’s paid tiers are less than a lot of other commercial alternatives out there, but don’t forget just because your company may have the budget (or is willing) to splash the cash, as they have the budget and get the value, that all companies will be the same (…in fact, I know in some companies even getting the budget for software licenses in the sub $100 range can be ‘tricky’).
So yeah, this is why finding the ‘right’ balance is particularly important, as some of those who just don’t have the budget, can’t get the finance, may still have been delivering value in other ways, and dedication and loyalty is something that companies can also go to great lengths (and spend a lot of money) on trying to ‘acquire’.
