While I don't expected people to work for free and this is a niche product, the $127 seeems excessive at more than the cost of an whole operating system. Seems like something Microsoft should include in the first place.
It actually seemed really low to me. My understanding is that accessibility software that's trying to make a profit usually needs to charge a much higher price, since it's focused on a much smaller set of users. (And people are willing to pay the higher price because it's so important to them.)
For example, the base version of the JAWS screen reader is $900:
Sublime charges a fair penny for what is a text editor and many KVMs are steeply priced as well. For the cost of the Adobe products you could buy multiple operating systems or whole workstations.
In general, I'd say developers have quite a bit of freedom to price their software based on their effort or the benefit it provides.
You should see the cost of other accessibility software if you think this is expensive.
ZoomText for visual difficulties, for example, costs up to $1200.
JAWS screen reader is $900 for home use. And they charge EXTRA for the ability to use Remote Desktop.
On one hand, I feel like they are really gouging people who have no other choice if they want to use a computer. On the other hand, I know the market is going to be a lot smaller than it would be for your average software...
It really creates a cost divide just for the ability to use a computer and get on the internet.
I don't think so, no. If I needed this software, I'd be very happy to see that price tag and know that the programmer has a sustainable business model and can continue supporting the software for as long as I need it. $127 to make computers accessible to someone who previously found them totally impossible is very fair. If (when) my parents need it at some point, I'll get it for them without a second thought.
