Mercedes-Benz to introduce acceleration subscription fee - for EQS

I too have mixed emotions on this one, Mkultra40!

1) I think it's cool that certain features/options can simply be unlocked by a software command over the air. For example, 10 degree rear wheel steering on some EQ* models.
2) It makes me wonder about the big-picture economics of such a strategy. Do the manufacturing benefits enjoyed by installing the same component on every car (whether desired or not) outweigh the costs? Or, are all buyers, as a whole, subsidizing this strategy by paying for at least a portion of hardware they never ordered?! I suspect it's a bit of both.
3) Subscriptions for over the air entertainment, movement monitoring, etc, I don't mind.

In the end, I don't strongly object to unlocking of an option or feature via a one-time payment. What I do object to is having to pay a monthly or annual subscription to be able to use hardware already in the vehicle. I suspect I feel more strongly about this than the average person because in the past, I have tended to keep cars 10-15+ years. I don't know, but perhaps I won't be able to practically keep an electric car this long. There is not enough of a track record on this... Looking at BMW customers having to pay for heated seats makes me very frustrated!

In the case of paying to unlock acceleration, I could personally care less. I have 0-60mph on my current ICE of 7.6 seconds and that's been quite fast enough for me. It irks me that I may be looking at paying for an EQE SUV 500 in order to be able to order the HyperScreen. Then I will have a 0-60mph acceleration of 4,7 seconds, which I absolutely do not need and do not want to pay for.

End of rant.