Thread: Does Free Fail?
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ysss's Avatar
Posts: 4,384 | Thanked: 5,524 times | Joined on Jul 2007 @ ˙ǝɹǝɥʍou
#44
Originally Posted by nwerneck View Post
I'm not sure it's so simple. Some companies also have itches to scratch too, and that often results in consumers being forced to pay more to gain less than they could win.
Yes, and customers can vote with their moeny. And as long as there are paying customers, there will be enough motivation for competing firms to fill this niche if the existing solution are deemend unworthy.

Companies often create exclusivity contracts, for example. They do things to build demand so they can sell a fish they already have... It's not just the liberal (I refer to the classic economy theory) naive dream of market demands being filled. Software is not some commodity as steel or coffee.
'Build demand'? Such as?
Actually, software IS being commoditized with the advent of open standards and open source solutions.

For example, why is it soooo difficult for large companies such as Adobe to release Linux versions of their programs? Do you really think it is just that the demand is not large enogh?
The demand is most definitely much lower than Windows and OSX. Other than that, it's probably deemed as uncharted territory that is still not worth exploring due to the potential return.

Profit driven is what many companies are. That does not imply consumers (and even employees!) will get the best possible products and life quality.
It was never implied.

PS: don't think I haven't noticed your use of the backslash character, sir!! '\' is a windows thing!!! this is taboo!!!!!!!
I'm on OSX. I also have windows, solaris and linux machines.

Last edited by ysss; 2009-08-15 at 15:21.