When we try to sell our service we usually get told the same thing over and over: "Our engineers can do that. We don't need a service for it.". And you know what, in the end it is true to a certain extent.

Our customers do have amazing engineers, and they can do anything. But do you want your engineers focusing on API maintenance tasks which are not the core of your product?

I think one of the most important things to count on when buying a service, is not buying because you can't do it, but is it something you should be doing? It is not a problem of expertise, it is a problem of focus. Specially in a startup, you should focus on your product. In the case of an API, it is a programmatic portal for your users, it is not the core of most businesses.

Basically you are buying customer support, and that brings all the points the article describes. It is all about the support, and the value that it brings.