What Would Be Disastrous For Linux, Open-Source

[TBBle]

The US government begins taxing open-source software. It's actually not as crazy as it sounds and could actually happen.

Open-source software is tax-free in the United States? Lucky bastards! How do you get away with that?

[johanar]

Guess it would be pretty bad if Microsoft made a deal with all major PC companies, forcing you to buy a bundled copy of Windows when you buy a new computer/laptop. Oh wait, it already is like that..

[nightmarex]

Windows 8 totally fails and all Windows users migrate to all the "user friendly" distros forcing all distros to start miming Windows with mindless GUI apps while all CLI programs cease to exist forcing all hackers to migrate to BSD while all the EX-windows users turn Linux into Windows with proprietary software/drivers/games + virri/spyware .

[asoltesz]

Lets not forget about the embedded world

I don't think that iOS threatens Linux any more than Windows.

Linux is heavily used in embedded where $0 cost and full source-code is the basis of the game.

iOS and MacOS cannot go there.

[Ex-Cyber]

I can't make any sense out of the claim that the US government could/would "tax open-source software". What measurable activity would be taxed, what would the collection mechanism be, and how/why would open source software be distinguished from proprietary software?

[?John?]

You'd be surprised, but the Open Source world is a little larger than one Country

A very fortunate side effect inherent to distributed systems

Look at how the "Computer" as we know it today is going to die. The next computer generation won't allow to install custom OS at all. So it is actually the hardware vendors that will kill the Free Software experience.

Apple's iPad is only the first, others will certainly follow.

You're very right about that! It's just a matter of time before the relatively open PC platform, where you can install your own OS, will become completely illegal and/or outmoded by "appliance" devices -- you're already starting to see this with tablets and netbooks. Then the big companies will all "adopt" Linux, but release OSes that are based on Linux but with huge amounts of proprietary software on top.

As you have said, it's already happening. Just have a look at what they did to Android - you know which components are the most poorly performing ones? The proprietary crap, of course! Toss in the fact that the undocumented hardware prevents you to install a custom build of Android unless you're able to hack around a lot of serious obstacles and you're pretty much screwed just as you are on proprietary systems! Nothing else but a good old vendor lock-in in a seemingly free and open source disguise.

Guess it would be pretty bad if Microsoft made a deal with all major PC companies, forcing you to buy a bundled copy of Windows when you buy a new computer/laptop. Oh wait, it already is like that..

I have nothing more to add - maybe except emphasizing the fact that using these practices, M$ isn't screwing just us, but even their own customers with retail Winblow$ license. It's called "M$ tax" for a reason.

[Remco]

I can't make any sense out of the claim that the US government could/would "tax open-source software". What measurable activity would be taxed, what would the collection mechanism be, and how/why would open source software be distinguished from proprietary software?

It would be better to tax proprietary software, since it doesn't otherwise contribute to the pool of common goods. Open source is communism after all!

[kraftman]

It would be better to tax proprietary software, since it doesn't otherwise contribute to the pool of common goods. Open source is communism after all!

Open Source is Freedom. Communism is not.

[Remco]

Open Source is Freedom. Communism is not.

Freedom is completely unrelated.

[smitty3268]

I can't make any sense out of the claim that the US government could/would "tax open-source software". What measurable activity would be taxed, what would the collection mechanism be, and how/why would open source software be distinguished from proprietary software?

Me either. There's already a sales tax that effects anything you buy, proprietary or not. And corporations all have to pay taxes unless they are non-profit. So is he talking about some kind of fee in addition to normal taxes that would only apply to OSS software? That seems unlikely to me, and it would raise all kinds of questions about what is included and how it's defined. Lots of big businesses push out some limited open source software, and they have tons of money (=clout) to keep something like this from happening. For instance, MS puts out a lot of MSPL licensed code - would they be fined?