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Depends on your market. If it's direct to consumer, you're basically in the same boat as shareware/freeware back in the day, and it's a model that _can_ work.
by cwyers 8y ago
Depends on your market. If it's direct to consumer, you're basically in the same boat as shareware/freeware back in the day, and it's a model that _can_ work.
If your market is businesses, then no. There is no budget for donations at most businesses. There is a budget for _buying_ things.
- krupan 8y agoThis. This is exactly how Red Hat makes money with open source. They straight up sell it to businesses.
- marcosdumay 8y agoEven more. There is a budget for buying things even when there is a perfectly good free version that does everything the business needs. One just needs to add "support", or "customization" into the features. Those are not free for the seller, but business will gladly overpay.
- craydandy 8y agoIt did work back in the day. Enough people had moral compass set in a way that they actually paid for software, even though paying was much more difficult then as it is today. However, I think times and people have changed. Not paying for shareware software wouldn't be problem for most people today. Most wouldn't even consider paying unless they could not use the software without paying for it.