I agree with your general perspective; but also, I see obvious benefits to charging for one's product directly from the user; revenue increases as you grow, no conflicting interests or prioritisations between advertisers and users.

What are the advantages to the advertising model from a business perspective? I see obvious downsides; ad placement is a careful balancing between frustrating/confusing your users and making money off of them. Costs aren't related to the useage of your product, etc.