From Seldo · · 1m 20s
Open source: We can force companies to pay maintainers
Registries charge companies for open source supply, paying maintainers directly.
In brief
Registries charge companies for open source supply, paying maintainers directly. Registries like npm can charge companies for supply chain access, automatically distributing payments to maintainers without forks or charity. Originally reported by Seldo.
The open source problem
Nobody pays for open source. We can force them to.
“Nobody pays for open source. We can force them to.”
The stable game
Open source is the dove. Closed source is the hawk.
“Open source is the dove. Closed source is the hawk.”
The equilibrium
Free wins share. Closed wins profit. Both win.
“Free wins share. Closed wins profit. Both win.”
The burnout
60% of maintainers quit or think about quitting.
“60% of maintainers quit or think about quitting.”
The cost
11% of 1.2 million projects are actively maintained.
“11% of 1.2 million projects are actively maintained.”
The solution
Registries charge companies for supply chain access.
“Registries charge companies for supply chain access.”
The payment
Royalties go directly to maintainers, pro rata.
“Royalties go directly to maintainers, pro rata.”
The registry
npm, PyPI, Docker Hub all have enterprise tiers.
“npm, PyPI, Docker Hub all have enterprise tiers.”
The problem
Companies pay for supply, not maintainers.
“Companies pay for supply, not maintainers.”
The market
JFrog, Docker, Sonatype make over $1 billion yearly.
“JF”
The fix
Registries meter corporate use and charge for it.
“Registries meter corporate use and charge for it.”
The payment
Royalties go to maintainers, pro rata.
“Royalties go to maintainers, pro rata.”
The registry
Registries own the domain and can charge.
“Registries own the domain and can charge.”
The test
Docker's revenue grew from $12m to $207m in 4 years.
“Docker's revenue grew from $12m to $207m in 4 years.”
The game
Free wins code. Default wins supply.
“Free wins code. Default wins supply.”
The future
AI agents are consuming open source faster.
“AI agents are consuming open source faster.”
The one thing
Registries like npm can charge companies for supply chain access, automatically distributing payments to maintainers without forks or charity.
