Too much money to give away... but how many people actually pay for seats? Maybe some business travelers (many of whom are the ones with status), or those who don't realize it is free at OLCI. Most won't. And just ends up being annoying because lots of people ask to switch seats onboard (my experience almost every time on Aegean, where everyone incl A3 golds need to pay to sit in the front half of the cabin, even at OLCI - enough people don't pay then seating is just a mess with random people in the exit rows and forward cabin).