Well, I need to make a presentation to a group of Computer Science students. (We are studying Economics, and that's my homework.) My theme is a market of shareware.
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With Shareware, I would suggest you describe the population of users, their demand for the software, and other desire components.
This was very helpful, thanks! Supply and demand are obvious things, that's why it's that easy to forget about 'em! I'm adding supply and demand to my list!
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Also, there are some risks with better products elsewhere. If another group makes your program, but does it better, then you lose.
That's called fair concurrence.
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You also can only get revenue in other ways (like ads), so it's difficult to sustain.
Thanks! Revenue from ads vs unhappy users is an interesting tradeoff to tell about.
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Further, people can take your source and improve it, essentially stealing your idea.
It's generally very hard to steal source code of a proprietary product. You can sue in this case. But there is another closely related problem, namely software patents. Patenting own products and defense form patent trolls are to be included in my presentation.