I can see this becoming a very lengthy debate about the pros and cons of a freemium model, but the point I think is that many new companies offer this to help g

I can see this becoming a very lengthy debate about the pros and cons of a freemium model, but the point I think is that many new companies offer this to help get their product into the hands of people who may otherwise shy away from them. I agree with you that it provides no incentive for companies to support their bottom-tier users, but if those same users find value in the service they eventually become paying customers who are confident on the platform and more likely to do business with them long-term. It's a marketing thing more than anything else. Not unlike drug dealers. Give em a taste and you'll get em hooked. :)