I won't pretend to be an expert on ad revenue. But couldn't one explanation for the Sync for Reddit vs. Lemmy pricing be that reddit had far more users, translating to more ad revenue from the free version, allowing the developer to justify a cheaper price for the paid version?

As far as the $20 for ad removal goes, I haven't seen any compelling arguments that it doesnt remove trackers. Ive seen several people posting proof that it does remove trackers, along with the tool and method they used to check. As for the subscription service, it includes a lot of really nice features beyond removing ads; I think its aimed at enthusiasts and power users.

I find the idea that ljdawson is just trying to capitalize on a trend in order to make a quick buck to be ridiculous. The app is already too polished for that. Sync already offers a far better experience than any alternatives IMO, and its still only in beta.