If the value isn't there, then tightening the belt is just a cop-out. Even if the service could stagnate with a steady trickle of profit, it's not worth it to t

If the value isn't there, then tightening the belt is just a cop-out. Even if the service could stagnate with a steady trickle of profit, it's not worth it to the founders who have their eyes on a bigger prize. The consumers who do derive considerable value are better served by an open-source implementation that can be iterated upon and developed further anyways.