BioWare has created three premium downloadable content packs for Dragon Age: Origins thus far and is currently working on a full-fledged expansion called The Awakening. They might not charge you for every piece of new content they produce, though.
DA:O lead writer David Gaider hinted at the possibility of free DLC in a conversation on BioWare's forums, in which he was defending the practice of charging for additional content. "Someone can get outraged [about premium DLC] if they want, but claiming that something is wrong simply because they do want the extra content but don't want to pay for it says more about their level of entitlement than anything else. In the end, we'll still be providing patches for DA (as we did for NWN, which -- surprise, surprise -- also had the "premium modules" for download) and possibly even some free content."
The word "content" carries a lot of meaning, obviously. He could mean a new quest or something smaller like new equipment or abilities. Still, free is free.
