We've been using the Firefox web browser for free since it first appeared way back in 2002, but later this year a premium version is planned as a new form of income for Mozilla.

As I Programmer reports, Mozilla CEO Chris Beard was recently interview by German website t3n where he confirmed a premium version of Firefox is set to appear in October. It will require a subscription in order to take advantage of the new features Mozilla is set to introduce.

Requiring payment for software that is currently free would be a dangerous move and one that's sure to reduce Firefox's user base. However, Beard was keen to point out in the interview that, "there is no plan to charge money for things that are now free."

Dave Camp, Senior Vice President of Firefox, has also commented, stating. "We were founded on the belief that the internet should be open and accessible to all. A high-performing, free and private-by-default Firefox browser will continue to be central to our core service offerings. We also recognize that there are consumers who want access to premium offerings, and we can serve those users too without compromising the development and reach of the existing products and services that Firefox users know and love."

In other words, Firefox will continue to exist as a free and open source web browser, but additional features will be bolted on for a price. The question is, what are those feature and how desirable will they be?

Mozilla has already experimented with a paid VPN service, which appeared in pilot form last October for $10 per month. Beard also mentioned a secure storage solution during the interview as one potential premium feature. Clearly Mozilla is thinking premium equates to security around the base free browser, which could be a tempting proposition for users as long as the subscription charge is reasonable.

Mozilla's desire to open up a new stream of income is understandable. Right now, over 90 percent of the corporation's income stems from search engine deals with companies including Google and Yandex. The rest is from sponsored content related to existing browser features such as Pocket. A subscription would form a third source of reliable income if Mozilla gets this right. Beard also sees it as a way to, "build deeper customer relationships outside the search business."

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