News Is The Fox selling out?

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2005/08/04/firefox_corporate_board/

 

Let's hope not.

I reckon that if they tried to make it closed source there'd be enough non-employees to keep it going as an open source project.

 

This is going to be interesting... Once again a proof that you never know what'll happen tomorrow in a technology world.

 

Discuss link goes back to the article not to here.

Anyways... Sounds to me like the values of Firefox could be going astray...

 

An updated note that I couldn't write in the news, because this part is speculation.

By American tax law, a foundation must spend the bulk of its profits towards its purpose, or pay a hefty penalty as well as tax on all receipts. They've been getting a lot more money from google/yahoo, because the market share for the Fox has grown tremendously in a short amount of time.

They may not be dumping all that money back into the Fox anymore...which means they either have to incorporate (losing their foundation status) so they can keep their profits, or pay a big penalty.

Our open-source love may have just gone big business on us all...

Oh, and typo...standardss should be made standards. And fix the discuss link.

 

Very tempting, when you're sat on a very popular product, to look at how you can make a few quid on the side. It's a bad time to upset the fanbase, though, with a certain other browser maybe improving its act...

 

I think there are enough people working on Firefox so that even if Mozilla goes overly corporate, Firefox will continue in one form or another from the latest (or perhaps final) open-source chunk o' code.

 

Oh my....

Bad move Mozilla, bad move.

 

I think more information needs to be presented, at the moment it isn't clear what the purpose of the spin off companie is.

 

If they can put more money into making Firefox even better than it already is, then I'm all for that.

 

Even if They charge you?

Maybe they're planning to make free-simplier and pro version which you have to buy... hmm I wonder

Anyways lets wait for more info

 

Google needs to buy them out. I mean Google has already poached all the people that made Firefox good in the first place

 

Man, this worries me. Not a lot, but still worries.

 

it's still early days, I don't think they will start charging for it as it's an open source project they have to ask everyone that ever contributed code to the fox the close the source. that usually involves $$$ or lies stating the offending code is removed... but how can you prove that if it's now closed source... In my opinion they are just trying to avoid penalties like "da dego" said. Part of their fanbase is there because they are open source and it is free, charging now would be ludicrous and many new branches would spawn from the projects.
any way enough ranting.... back to mindless repetition....

 

I dont care if they do go closed source (i dont think they will)... If they can continue to put out a quality browser for free! I don't care if they get rich... or anything else for that fact. IMO firefox is just a name if they pull a netscape someone else will just pickup were they left off, and we'll all be using thing-a-ma-doodle v.2.4!!!