You do Winstep Extreme...on a yearly licensing basis as well...the development and maintenance as well as server rental space justify that. So why does MS have to be different?
I don't do 'software rental'. I don't charge for 'major upgrades' either (whatever that is), since what constitutes a 'major upgrade' is arbitrary.
I do something which I think is fair for both users *and* me: when you purchase a Winstep product, you are purchasing that particular version and what it does for you NOW. As a bonus, you get one full year of free upgrades.
When that year elapses, to get another year of free upgrades you do have to pay a fraction of your initial purchase price.
However, you do NOT have to renew your upgrade subscription unless you absolutely want a new version that was released outside your free upgrades period. You are not forced to upgrade, and, by the same token, there is no penalty whatsoever if you don't renew your upgrade subscription exactly when your free year of upgrades elapses.
So, if you purchased a version that was released in 2012 and you are happy with that, you can use it until you are blue in the face. If in 2020 you decide a new version is finally worth the small upgrade price, the upgrade price is what you pay for that version, you don't have to pay full price again EVER. Furthermore, this will entitle you to another year of free upgrades.
Thus, to keep making money with renewals, I have to keep coming up with new features that users feel are worth upgrading for. See? Fair for everybody. I get paid for my work, users get their money's worth in features when - and only when - *they* decide they want to.
If a user decides not to renew their upgrade subscription, the version they already have is theirs and will keep on working FOREVER.
What Microsoft is aiming for here (see Office 365) is very different, it's software as a service (e.g.; software rental): you pay a monthly fixed amount for the privilege of using their OS, regardless of that OS offering new features in between your last payment or not.
But then what happens if you don't pay? I guess that is obvious: Windows will stop working.
Yes, Microsoft are entitled to do that when it comes to Office and other specific applications, but Windows is a very different beast. You don't run Windows to run Windows, you run Windows to run *everything else* that runs under it.
Jorge....this machine is Win 7. It doesn't have that little icon TELLING me to upgrade. I CORRECTLY disabled the 'feature'. It can be done....
Hey, guess what? I disabled it too. That still didn't stop Windows from downloading 6.5 GB of Windows 10 setup code into my PC. And then I got that 'optional' (by mistake, of course) Windows 10 Upgrade on Windows Update, and the only option it was giving me was to go ahead and install the damn thing. There was no option for 'No, thanks' or 'Please install the normal updates but not this crap'. Just 'Upgrade Now'.
Now, I know my way around Windows, so I knew how to get around that. But the normal user? Not so much unless they ask someone for help. And if they don't then they were cornered into installing Windows 10 on their computer without really wanting to.
And are these the actions of an ethical company? Really? Would it be very hard for Microsoft to add an option saying 'No thanks, not now, maybe later'? Come on!