Hot take from the author: This is a commonly repeated claim, but it’s probably not accurate.

It’s FAR easier for companies to stick with the interview process they’ve used for decades—just mandate in-person interviews again—than to reinvent the wheel with some new, unproven format. Sure, there’s a growing need to assess more than just DS&A in initial screenings, but let’s be honest: those interviews aren’t going anywhere.

The REAL reason to make these resources free? Because it’s not a competitive advantage to offer problems to practice. There are already tons of free problems online. The real value isn’t in giving people a place to do problems—that already exists. The value is in the book. If you already know enough to do well on problems without the book, then you shouldn't have to pay to practice it.