How Open Source Companies Build a Support-Driven Revenue Model

Lucas and Luna dig into why some open source companies are ditching the per-seat license model and building revenue around support subscriptions. They examine the case of HashiCorp, which famously moved from open source to a business source license in 2023, then later restructured its pricing around support tiers rather than feature gates. The hosts discuss the trade-offs: support revenue is stickier and more predictable, but it requires a fundamentally different kind of sales motion—one based on service level agreements, response times, and trust rather than feature checklists. Luna pushes back on whether this works for smaller companies without a strong brand, and Lucas walks through how companies like GitLab and Red Hat have made support a core revenue driver. They also touch on the rise of third-party support providers for open source software and what that means for the ecosystem. By the end, listeners will understand why support is becoming the preferred monetization mechanism for a new generation of open source companies. #OpenSource #RevenueModel #SupportRevenue #HashiCorp #RedHat #GitLab #SaaS #BusinessSourceLicense #EnterpriseSales #Subscription #SLA #ThirdPartySupport #DeveloperTools #Monetization #BusinessAndTechnology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #OpenSourceBusiness Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo