[lbo-talk] MySQL to go public

[Chuck]

Colin Brace wrote:
  A company like Red Hat can make lots of dough
> selling its services, but if ever it were to claim proprietary
> interest in the source code and/or make decisions that weren't in the
> public good (alas rather narrowly defined in this context), people
> could and would quickly jump ship. This issue is all the more germane
> given the truly onerous Digital RIghts Management (DRM) features of
> Vista, which are described in all their gory detail in the article
> which Dwayne alluded to in another thread earlier today.

The fact that Red Hat is making money off of a free product is very 
interesting. It flies in the face of the notion that a company has to 
sell physical products and control everything about the production and 
distribution of those products.

I'm not the first person to say this, but there have been quite a few 
people who have pointed out that the music industry can still make money 
even if large amounts of music and content are being obtained for free 
(piracy). When I talk about this with friends, I outline three ways why 
the music industry can still make money when file-sharing is pervasive 
and popular:

1) Convenience - Even though file-sharing is easy, not everybody can 
figure out how to use the software. Most people don't have the time to 
download files through Limewire or even through official services like 
iTunes. The success of ITunes proves this point, as it has made it easy 
for mroe people to download music, manage their collections, and 
transfer it to portable listening devices. CDs are still selling. People 
will pay money for convenience, which is obvious given that the American 
economy revolves around convenience.
2) Collectibles - People will spend money on collectibles. That's why 
almost any house or apartment has a collection of CDs. Some of you know 
music geeks whose walls are lined with record albums. People will buy 
concert t-shirts, posters, special editions, and Grateful Dead recordings.
3) Services to bands - While many bands and musicians dislike the music 
industry, many of them still have a desire to be popular. Making 
arbitrary musicians popular is something the music industry does well. 
The industry can provide promotional services to musicians, provide 
business services, and organize shows and tours.

Please don't forward this to the music industry. I don't want to give 
them any money-making ideas. ;-)

Chuck