Computer software manufactures get the R & D resources from the money they get from users paying for the upgrades, and new users (Of which there is always a continuous supply) that buy it because of the new features added.
Open keyboards are no different. (Unless you�re suicidal enough to give away large software upgrades for free)

Think about it Diki, would you hang on to the same software on your keyboard for 10 years if you could upgrade it relatively cheaply (At a fraction of the cost of changing the board) to get the latest and greatest.
The software upgrade route also usually means that you don�t lose features, they just get added to. (Just think if all you had to do was to buy a software upgrade to get all the features of a G70 for a G1000 without losing any existing features)

Bill