Comments on: Digital Deprivation http://www.fishingforwater.net/archives/63 ... altogether just a drop in the sea ... Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:08:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.4 by: Cave Duck http://www.fishingforwater.net/archives/63#comment-278 Fri, 09 Mar 2007 05:16:24 +0000 http://www.fishingforwater.net/archives/63#comment-278 Litigation. It is the business equivalent of being hit by an asteroid, relatively rare but catastrophic when it does occur. Most software and tools have an End User License Agreement (EULA) of some fashion. If freely downloaded software is used to make things that end up being used in a business, there is the potential for the author of said tool to come knocking looking for "their share". After all by using the product, you act as an agent and sign that license for the company, not as an individual. The concern of looking for a "big pay day" is especially true in finance, the infamous bank robber Willie Sutton was once asked "Willie, why do you rob banks?" And he replied, "Because that's where the money is." How much thought would a struggling developer give suing a firm with over a trillion dollar in assets under management? This is not to say your cause is not just. While the benefits of freedom in the workplace are numerous, they are difficult to quantify. In contrast, losing billions and the associated press coverage is clear and stark. Intellectual Property law and how it applies to software and technology is being written every day in the courts, sometimes at the cost of billions to the losing party. Until there is fundamental reform in our legal system to deal with the rapid advances of technology, creativity will be hamstrung on many levels and in many American businesses. Litigation. It is the business equivalent of being hit by an asteroid, relatively rare but catastrophic when it does occur. Most software and tools have an End User License Agreement (EULA) of some fashion. If freely downloaded software is used to make things that end up being used in a business, there is the potential for the author of said tool to come knocking looking for “their share”. After all by using the product, you act as an agent and sign that license for the company, not as an individual. The concern of looking for a “big pay day” is especially true in finance, the infamous bank robber Willie Sutton was once asked “Willie, why do you rob banks?” And he replied, “Because that’s where the money is.” How much thought would a struggling developer give suing a firm with over a trillion dollar in assets under management?

This is not to say your cause is not just. While the benefits of freedom in the workplace are numerous, they are difficult to quantify. In contrast, losing billions and the associated press coverage is clear and stark. Intellectual Property law and how it applies to software and technology is being written every day in the courts, sometimes at the cost of billions to the losing party. Until there is fundamental reform in our legal system to deal with the rapid advances of technology, creativity will be hamstrung on many levels and in many American businesses.

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