I suspect, and this is just a guess, WW meetings must pay rent and salaries so they have to charge to cover the costs.

Why people go to meetings, instead of being on free forums, may have to do with needing the face-to-face encouragement. For some, writing of any kind is a chore but talking is pure pleasure. So they go to talk and share their issues and get immediate answers to questions.

My problem with the WW meetings was that they were run by successful WW's. The mantra was "If I can do it, you can do it." As a result, most could never deviate from the plan when giving advice. They had no answers for those who followed the plan strictly (me) but did not lose. It was not till I read Protein Power (and lost) that I discovered we all had different metabolisms and food type was as important, if not more important, than calories. WW then and now must follow the Dietary Guidelines which is low fat. For some of us, that just doesn't work.

I hope it works for Oprah.