Perhaps they are doing this for three reasons: 1. They view this as a cheaper way to get the word out to potentially interested people at a relatively low cost

Perhaps they are doing this for three reasons: 1. They view this as a cheaper way to get the word out to potentially interested people at a relatively low cost. For example, this gets their name plastered on deals websites, Hacker News, Web Hosting Talk, among other websites. It would cost as much (in terms of marginal revenues - marginal costs) to finance an awareness campaign through Google or Facebook (or other means), although I am not sure about the details. 2. Perhaps they think lots of people will forget to cancel after their trial ends. 3. They think that people will be too lazy to move their files off their servers when it's time. What do you think? I still am skeptical that this is a good marketing strategy, but I'd like to hear all your opinions.