Freemium
A pricing strategy by which a product or service (typically a digital offering or application such as software, media, games or web services) is provided free of charge, but money (a premium) is charged for proprietary features, functionality, or virtual goods.
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Origin
On March 23, 2006, venture capitalist Fred Wilson published a post on his AVC blog describing his favorite business model and invited readers to name it. Jarid Lukin, director of e-commerce at Wilson's portfolio company Alacra, proposed blending "free" and "premium" into freemium — and Wilson adopted the word immediately. The term spread rapidly through Silicon Valley and was popularized further in Chris Anderson's 2009 book Free: The Future of a Radical Price.
Updated February 22, 2026