In THE LOGIC OF COLLECTIVE ACTION, the Nobel economist Mancur Olson argues that programs like NetRelease can't work over the long term, because potential users of the IP will learn to wait for others to invest, since they will be able to acquire all the benefits of use without any of the costs. In shareware, for instance, authors appear to receive only a small proportion of the anticipated royalties, since many users use the shareware without paying -- perhaps figuring that others will pay for them.
If I were a copyright owner, I would have to assume that, in time, NetRelease will equal free distribution with little or no prospect of revenues.
John Garrett
<0004716758[_at_]mcimail.com>
Received on Tue Apr 26 1994 - 13:49:11 GMT
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