4 ms·
Firefox and Internet Explorer aren't products that sell on a market though. There is zero cost to the consumer for using one or the other, so competition is exc
by rbranson 16y ago
Firefox and Internet Explorer aren't products that sell on a market though. There is zero cost to the consumer for using one or the other, so competition is exclusively on features. Open source is sort of post-capitalist in a way.
Often markets that suffer from stagnation and seem ripe for the taking by an entrepreneur are that way for a reason: monopoly, government policy favoring large corporations, conditions created by the dominant players, etc.
These firms use Windows because of the tremendous cost associated with switching, which is a key strategy of Microsoft. Software is one of the few industries where products are designed specifically to create lock-in scenarios, and it is accepted by the mainstream.
- kiba 16y agoThese firms use Windows because of the tremendous cost associated with switching It generally does not alway means that new firms will use them. If incumbent are bureaucratic and slow enough to the point of negating the regulations in place, than it might be easier for a linux using firm to enter the market. If the regulations is skewed enough, than firms that used windows may in fact not died at all. Even though I know that the regulations is very skewed, I still like to think that the merit of other operating systems will win out in the long run, even if that long run is a really long time.