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Kind of a hard argument to make when there are plenty of examples of contributions to computing that weren't bankrolled by monopolies. Just think about how much
by callinyouin 9y ago
Kind of a hard argument to make when there are plenty of examples of contributions to computing that weren't bankrolled by monopolies. Just think about how much, especially in the early days, came out of academia alone. And I'm not sure where you get that the modern web has been bankrolled by Google and Apple when there are many, many other contributors.
IMO, innovation is usually fueled by competition. Where there's lots of competition, the need to innovate is the necessity for survival. I mean, how innovative was Microsoft in the 90's when they essentially had a monopoly on desktop computing? That's how we got stuck with IE 6 for so long...
- rayiner 9y ago> Just think about how much, especially in the early days, came out of academia alone. Academic institutions are hugely monopolistic... > Where there's lots of competition, the need to innovate is the necessity for survival. That's the theory. In practice, competition drives bean-counting efficiency. See, e.g., Thinkpads before and after the Lenovo acquisition. Pretty much the only place you see innovation in that space is among companies that can carve out a niche based on brand or differentiating factors (Apple), or among companies that have a monopoly on a key piece of the supply chain (Intel, Microsoft).