this post was submitted on 15 Jun 2025
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This seems a bit of an odd take. Matrix.org making their server freemium is up to them - charging some users to use the service (not the software) is a way of keeping the lights on. Better that than ads or selling user data. Lots of privacy focused orgs do the same - Proton, Tuta, Mailbox, Mullvad, IVPN. If people also have an issue with Element - don't use Element, use one of the other apps.
If people are this upset, its not impossible (or even that hard) to migrate to a different server - or host your own.
Yeah they have the rights to do it, doesn't mean it's a good thing to do, doesn't mean it won't negatively impact the future of the project.
Redis had the rights to change the license of redis, look at where that led them.
Hard to see how them choosing to charge money to access their server will affect the future of the project, even them choosing to not run a free for anyone server any more wouldn't necessarily affect the future of the project because the project is not to provide a free for all server but to develop software. Either way, them trying to find a way to keep the server operating certainly doesn't mean 'Matrix is cooked'.
As far as Redis goes, as I understand it, they moved their software away from an open source license. There's zero indication Matrix are going to do the same thing.
If the best argument in favor of something is "you have the right to do it," the thing usually isn't very good
I think the problem is that the Matrix Foundation (non-profit org) is being slowly cannibalized by Element (for-profit, VC-funded) which ends up making their costs and profit expectations a lot higher.
Right now this is only impacting the matrix.org homeserver. However, this could eventually end up impacting protocol-level design choices that harm other instances as well. Sure, you could fork the protocol and clients, but now we're talking about taking up the work that an entire organization had previously been doing. Not impossible if an existing organization like the FSF or Linux Foundation started backing something, but not a great place to be in either.
Edit: grammar