Indeed, that's a good question ๐ค An interesting solution might have been to leave the app free and make certain functions like speed cameras or real-time traffic accessible with the โฌ1/year subscription. (I'm not saying it's a good solution, it's just an idea)
For my part, I'm more concerned about the "subscription" aspect. I'd have been prepared to pay โฌ10 to get Magic Earth for life. But at 99 cents a year, it doesn't seem like much, and there's no guarantee that it'll become monthly or more expensive, for example.
Basically Google Maps by Apple on iOS