For a real business, $169 is peanuts. If it's $9 a month or $169 a year, that won't make any difference for a professional app developer. I'm sure you've heard

For a real business, $169 is peanuts. If it's $9 a month or $169 a year, that won't make any difference for a professional app developer. I'm sure you've heard of the Adobe products with price tags of around $1000. That's the price tag that software regularly goes for in this world. We're talking about developers who earn upwards of $200 an hour. I'm sure you can appreciate how a pro developer wouldn't blink an eyelash at $169. The "added risk" of paying $169 is exactly zero. Anyone who buys this is either a hobbyist or a business. The business is about to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars into making apps using RubyMotion. The upfront cost of $169 is peanuts. Sure, hobbyists or amateurs might find it more attractive to try out that way, but the extra cost in support and the decreased perceived value are probably too big of a cost, and not worth it. Ask your mom, dad, brother, sister, what software they pay for every month. They'll probably answer "there is software you need to pay for every month?". Mac OS X or Windows, both "regular" software without monthly payments. Office, same thing. Almost every app in the app store, software without monthly payments. 99% of the games, software without monthly payments.