Apollo will be charged $2.50 per user per month to access the Reddit API, for a total of $1.7 million dollars the first month the bill is due; so, Apollo has 0.68 million users.
If we estimate that 30% of Apollo users will still be using the app after a period of time, then:
If users average one year of usage, Apollo must charge a fixed purchase price at least $2.50 * 12 = $30 plus overhead, in order to stay afloat without a subscription.
If users average three years of usage, Apollo must charge $90.
I have been using Apollo for five years, so I would expect to see Apollo charge $150 under your pricing model.
I consider Apollo to be worth $150, but only because I’ve been using it for five years. Their app would not be viable in the marketplace if it charged up front for two or more years of API usage.
Finally, I’ve been using Reddit for fourteen years, so if I continue using Apollo past my fifth year, the developer will lose $30/year on me. So, the developer will need to implement a shell game scheme, where new signups are charged an extra overhead on their $30/year flat fee to cover the usage costs of the users who are beyond their fifth year, which means that prices will be adjusted upwards each year for new users.
Flat app pricing is not a viable pricing model for Reddit’s usage-based API billing of Apollo users, resembles a pyramid scheme when modeled to include long-term existing users, and drives annual price increases leading to a collapse in user signups and the death of Apollo.
If your math shows otherwise, in some way that demonstrates how an Apollo flat fee model can pay for usage-based billing for as many years as the app continues operating, please share your work.