(DOWNLOAD) "Commercializing Open Source Software: Do Property Rights Still Matter?" by Harvard Journal of Law & Technology " Book PDF Kindle ePub Free

August 05, 2021

eBook details

Title: Commercializing Open Source Software: Do Property Rights Still Matter?
Author : Harvard Journal of Law & Technology
Release Date : January 22, 2006
Genre: Engineering,Books,Professional & Technical,
Pages : * pages
Size : 308 KB

Description

I. INTRODUCTION For several years now, open source software products have been gaining prominence and market share. Yet the products themselves are not as provocative as the way in which they are developed and distributed. Two related features of the open source model are distinctive: the use of collaborative development structures that extend beyond the boundaries of a single firm, and the lack of reliance on intellectual property ("IP") rights as a means of appropriating the value of the underlying technologies. Firm-level control of intellectual property is replaced by a complex set of relations, both informal and sometimes contractual, among strategic partners not joined by firm boundaries. I argue here that those relations reflect not coalescence towards industry norms driven solely by superior output, but rather a series of strategic moves and countermoves that have had the effect of opening some markets while closing others, substantially reducing profit margins, and fostering consolidation of a traditionally fragmented industry.