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Why don’t application developers who have abandoned their development make the code they don’t need open source? (self.asklemmy)

submitted 1 year ago by Slow to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

22 comments fedilink hide all child comments

There are many closed source applications that have been removed from the Google Play catalog for various reasons.

Often this reason is the cessation of further development and maintenance of the application.

Why don't these people make the code open to everyone if they don't need it anymore?

This could bring great benefits to all people, but everything that was once created simply disappears.

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[–] zero_iq@lemm.ee 33 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

In addition to other reasons already given, commercial software may contain licensed code, libraries, assets, trademarks, and other IP that cannot legally be given away for free, or under an open source licence.

Sure, it may be possible to strip those things out, but that may leave the software broken or fundamentally changed, and it may be a significant amount of work to do, which am author or publisher is not likely to spend on abandoned software, especially if their free release would compete with any current products.

[–] kernelle@0d.gs 6 points 1 year ago

It's a whole licensing thing where they have very little to gain but a lot to lose. Intelectual property is very important in the IT world, companies tend to keep their work for themselves.