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I forgot that the first line of the GPL reads "YOU MAY NOT SELL THIS FOR PROFIT". It's a shame there are no billion dollar companies based around the GPL... /s


> It's a shame there are no billion dollar companies based around the GPL... /s

There is and it is called Google. It's a champion for Open Source and seems to use Open Source software almost exclusively across their entire organisation.


The /s indicates sarcasm.

Of course there is Google, Amazon, Red Hat, SUSE, even IBM uses a lot of GPL software...


All server software. No one makes money from FOSS desktop software.


Depends what you consider making money to be.

Plenty of businesses depend on FOSS desktop software, it makes them money. If I use Linux and tools like Blender, Vim, GCC, etc..., and I sell the resulting product, then I'm making money with FOSS, am I not?


You are, but the guys coding the software you use are not.

So unless you make the effort to contribute back, they will have some issues to pay the rent.


Firefox?


They get paid by Google.


Would Google have been able to get there if Linux and most open source software was licensed as GPLv3?




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