[ Thanks to Matt D. for
this link. ]
“Is there really the level of competition in the open source
world that we see in the closed source world? This is something
that has been stuck in my mind lately as I have been told so many
times by closed source developers that by opening the code you are
creating your own competition. Today, I’m here to explore this
theory and hopefully prove why it’s false.“With open source software, the business model is different from
closed source. Take Songbird, for instance. Like iTunes, we have a
music portal app that allows users to browse and listen to their
music in a very innovative way. Unlike closed source alternatives,
however, Songbird will play on all three major operating systems,
in addition to letting the user browse embedded music on the
artist’s site. Then throw in Firefox-like extensions for further
user inspired customization and you have yourself a fantastic
little media browser…”