Free of charge implies that a product or service is provided without the consumer or user making any consideration.
Gratuity is a term that comes from the French gratuité , which in turn is derived from a medieval Latin word. Gratuity refers to the condition of being free (of grace or lacking foundation).
The most common use of the concept is in economics . In this context, it refers to the free nature of a service or good when these are provided without the beneficiary making any compensation .
Gratuity, therefore, means that the service or good has no price and that the beneficiary does not pay for it (does not give money in exchange). In any case, it is important to note that there is no service or good that is socially free.
Free of charge and cost of production
All services and products have a production cost and carry an externality (the costs and benefits of their production and/or consumption that are not reflected in the price). In order for the beneficiary not to pay for what is given to them free of charge, someone must first assume the costs .
If the good in question really has no cost to anyone, it is not an economic good . In that case we would have to talk about a free good , which has no price and no owner. Wind , for example, is a free good, not an economic good that is given away for free.
Many people make the use of software conditional on it being free because they are not willing to pay for computer programs.
Access without payment
Beyond all that has been said, in colloquial language, free of charge is often linked to non-payment by the consumer or user . Between 2009 and 2017, to cite one example, the Argentine State developed a program known as Fútbol Para Todos . Many argued that this measure guaranteed the free broadcasts of First Division football matches, since viewers did not have to pay to access such content .
However, others argued that the State assumed the costs (paying fees, financing technical operations, etc.) and that citizens, in turn, financed the State through the payment of taxes . That is why they claimed that such free access did not exist.
Free and software
In the field of software development >, for example, the industry has undergone a significant change since its beginnings at the beginning of the second millennium with respect to the pricing of its products, starting from figures accessible to a few to reaching free of charge as a key to the mass distribution of a basic package that can then be completed through small payments for specific functions or add-ons.
We are in an era in which free software and video games are practically a condition for the consumption of a large portion of consumers. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the mobile market: a large percentage of mobile phone users expect downloadable products from the online store to be free or to cost very little money. On the other hand, in the field of computing and traditional video games, both for computers and consoles, prices are very high and this does not prevent these markets from proliferating.
The acceptance of piracy
Perhaps the problem begins when people associate the concepts of free and fair, because they seem to overlook the economic and energy investment that the creation of their favorite products requires . Piracy is one of the most regrettable phenomena, and it affects the film industry as well as the music, literature and video game industries.
Far from being a crime committed in the shadows, millions of people practice and proudly defend it, claiming that they do not consider it fair to have to pay to see a film. This nonsense is sustained in part because certain companies are afraid to charge for their products and services, or to offer them at considerably low prices.