I’m the person who conducts the price increases.
This was the first time the yearly subscription went up in price. I’m not sure why you think it went up every year. We launched at $119 in May 2015, and it went up to $149 in Jan 2023. In fact, with inflation, you can think of it as going DOWN every year except this year.
The lifetime subscription has increased twice, from $499 to $699 in November 2019 and from $699 to $829 in January 2023. The monthly subscription also increased in January 2023. It was also the first time it went up since its introduction in 2020.
As for justification… Costs related to running the business have increased, and inflation continues to devalue the $ brought in yearly. 2021-2022 had high inflation rates, and the price increase allowed us to stay a healthy business.
It was a pretty standard event late last year, with many companies have similar price increases.