[ Thanks to Matt Asay
for this link. ]
“Patents are short-term monopolies (20 years) designed to give
inventors sufficient time in which to recoup their R&D costs
and turn a profit. Open source turns the 20-year patent term into
two years, if that. As a relentless, ever-growing competitor, open
source keeps the proprietary world in check and on its toes to a
degree that the industry has never before seen.”