The value in HN comments is high. Just because they don't show ads doesn't mean they aren't able to capture that value either. HN is not free in the purest se

The value in HN comments is high. Just because they don't show ads doesn't mean they aren't able to capture that value either. HN is not free in the purest sense. Companies/ideas/agendas are presented to you. It a way it's a platform and platforms are usually free and offer at least some network effect value.