| From: | Wordman <wordman@*******.COM> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Corps care about money, not people (was Re: [OT] Euro question) |
| Date: | Sat, 2 May 1998 19:07:23 -0400 |
Ojaste listed some possible strategies for corps dealing with an
encroaching freeware operating system being released, writing:
> Mega #1 ties things up
> legally while Mega #2 writes virii to combat the OS directly, while
> Mega #3 kills the author(s) to discourage further development.
Mega #4 hires the writers to build the product for them (or keep it
perpetually unreleased and eventually move the writers into something
else). Mega #4 would probably win, unless the writers were _extremely_
idealistic. Mega #4 could rationalize spending a pretty large sum of cash.
Say they do $200 million in OS sales a year. If they think the new OS might
steal, say, 10% of the market from them, they are more than justified in
spending $20 million to buy out the writers. Probably more, because
controlling new OS could damage their sales year after year. I can't think
of many programmers who wouln't sell out for $20 million, especially if
they could keep working on their pet project. (Also, chances are a
mega-corp does way more than $200 million in OS sales.)
Mega #3, who went for killing the authors, wouldn't last long. Talent and
training are very hard to find; you don't get ahead by wasting people who
demonstrate both. Save murder as a way of solving problems for people who
care about honor and vengence and so on, like the Mob. Corps care about
money, not people. Sometimes, its smart for a corp to kill, but usually
cash will solve the problem with a lot less fuss.
Wordman
