You say &quot;but much of the software industry would be unsustainable on that footing.&quot; That&#x27;s what you call a tautology: It&#x27;s very difficult to charge a unit license for open source software. Sure, but is taht relevant anymore?<p>Android is the most widely used OS on the planet, and it became so faster than anyone expected.  What advantage do closed-source vendors actually derive from a fetish for secrecy? Do their customers believe they&#x27;ve got some secret advantage? Does anyone believe Windows has some secret sauce in it that makes it better than other OSs?<p>Much of the software industry today sustains itself on indirect revenue. Even Microsoft admits it must pivot to ecosystem revenue and away from unit licensing revenue.