UPDATE: 1/19/2010-
now that the game has become free to play, even the software has been made freely available and can be downloaded from their website at startrekonline.com

come january 17, 2012, starfleet academy will open it’s doors to all of the federation, fully embracing star trek’s noble position of abolishing currency. yes, star trek online goes free to play! i imagine you will still need to make the initial software purchase but beyond that there is no purchase necessary. seriously no further payment required. you get two character slots, and full access to all quests, raids, content, locations, etc. there are only a few limits placed upon free players compared to subscribers or lifetime members and there are a few benefits added to the paying accounts. if i were not a lifetime member i would seriously consider moving down to a free account because you really can play everything. from a lifetime member position i am worried that too many people will move down to a free model and put the game in jeopardy.

so what are these limits for free players? free players can not make their own fleets (guilds) but they can join fleets. free players will also have small inventory space and will have the option to purchase bridge officer slots as they gain rank where as the subscribers will gain these slots free. also limited is in game chat and email to curtail the extra spam that will come with the addition of free players. paying members also gain benefits, such as the veterans rewards for being members for a certain number of days, and 400 “promotional points” a month for use in the c-store. i love the c-store stipend as these are points that previously cost real money to gain so i could buy stuff in the store, but now i get these points just because. since there really are no gameplay limits to the free players the only reason i can see to become a paying customer is the stipend and the bridge officer slots. the stipend is 400 points a month, the points can be purchased for $6.50 for 500 points… so yes, i am worried that too many people will go free to play. but i say bring on all the players we can get, free or otherwise and i will simply trust cryptic to see the popularity and somehow turn that into enough cash to keep this game going strong.

star trek online free vs pay comparison

star trek online going free to play in january – geek.com