Open Source Software, Semi Porous Brands, & the Blending of Content & Ads

As the web grows users are getting better at tuning out obvious ads. So ads will get more insidious, and more and more businesses will be built off a missing features and shadow brand built on the back of the goodwill from sharing and open source.

One guy got angry at me claiming that I was providing conflicting information, because he read the blogger's guide to seo and saw that I recommended using Wordpress but also recommended avoiding using Wordpress.com. I am not the one who created that shadow brand, but I do realize that is has the potential to be enormously profitable.

Pligg, an open source software program similar to Digg, recently went up for sale but did not sell. Now Pligg is has some plug ins available from the official Pligg pro store. One of them is a list of known spamming domains.

As software licensing costs fall, the keys to selling software are to:

  • create an open source core that does your marketing and builds a large userbase
  • have some dynamic updating data service
  • lack essential features that people can buy as a bolt on (this is essentially your software licensing fee, but it is cloaked)
  • lock in user data (though this is short term - the smartest users will refuse to use it)
  • provide an easy to use for dummies version that makes it easier to charge people for easily automated services
Published: December 21, 2007 by Aaron Wall in business

Comments

AjaxMax
December 21, 2007 - 2:00am

"Pligg is missing some features (like anti-spam). You can buy the plug in from the official Pligg pro store."

The above is totally inaccurate. You may want to correct your article.

Pligg has a freely available Akismet Anti-spam Module
Pligg has a freely available Captcha Anti-spam Module
Pligg has a freely available Blacklist Anti-spam Module

December 21, 2007 - 2:54am

Hi Max
I will fix that. But the stuff they are selling is likely better than the stuff that is free.

Add new comment

(If you're a human, don't change the following field)
Your first name.
(If you're a human, don't change the following field)
Your first name.
(If you're a human, don't change the following field)
Your first name.