Are you really comparing a multibillion dollar company to an open source project? Also this has nothing to do with backwards compatibility, it's about supporti

Are you really comparing a multibillion dollar company to an open source project? Also this has nothing to do with backwards compatibility, it's about supporting older kernels with security fixes and similar. The decision is a pragmatic one to lessen the burden on the unpaid volunteers. Like others have mentioned if a company needs a specific kernel pay up. Or use Windows. Don't compare apples to oranges.