license suggestions?

Lee Morgan python at
Tue Jul 10 03:32:13 EDT 2001


Forgive my naivety, but ...

Has anyone proposed the idea of having a timebomb license?

Similar to drug companies control of new drugs to a market. ie you get
8 years to develop and market your new drug but after that its open
season. (I'm not wholly certain how this works - and 2 years or less is
probably more applicable for software).

Wouldn't this prevent shrewd business men like Gates gaining runaway
monopolies and yet allow commercial r&d to contribute to technological
innovation? ie You get 2 years to recoup your investment and then the
license drops to GPL or something.

You still get several huge companies in the clinical market though
(maybe because 8 years is enough to gain sustainable 'brand' power) -
but I don't think there is a monopoly.

Also this would probably require legislating software companies -
which I can't imagine happening.

But the conceptual free market often works better as a regulated free
market. Just as the conceptual democracy works better as a democratic

Anyway its just a thought - exploration/condemnation and
dissection welcome.



Lee Morgan

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