“Nothing is ever free.”
I once had a free lunch. ;-)
Do you consider Linux to be “free”? (Referencing your tag line.)
There is always some cost. In the case of Linux, while it is monetarily free, it would cost the average user time to climb the learning curve, and cost of equipment. There is (or was) a cost of some kind for development, in terms of time and resources, to somebody. The end user may not be the one who pays, but it is paid by someone.
To which I say TANSTAAFL;-)
You pay for a “free lunch” by all the beer you buy.