Episode 162: The diapers.com effect, also, LTS and the mysteries of software pricing

Are we still on that open source licensing thing? Yes. “The most boring topic of all time.” Also, Slack's logo and long term support software monetization models: how do they work?

Summary:

• “Diapers.com buster (AKA Amazon)”
• “What is someone really selling with LTS?”
• “Artful genitals.”
• “It’s not butt ducks”
• “I’ve had three dogs since then…”
• Microsoft laughed.

This week’s cover art from TheNextWeb.

MONGO, MONGO, MONGO!

• MongoDB Issues New Server Side Public License for MongoDB Community Server
• MongoDB not in RHEL 8.0
• MongoDB "open-source" Server Side Public License rejected
• AWS vs. open source: DocumentDB is the latest battlefront
• AWS gives open source the middle finger
• AWS, MongoDB, and the Economic Realities of Open Source (Ben Thompson) Fine, fine…but music companies didn’t “sell” CDs, they sold music. Authors don’t “sell” printed books, they sell stories. They sell IP. The medium isn’t the product.
  • “This trade-off is inescapable, and it is fair to wonder if the golden age of VC-funded open source companies will start to fade (although not open source generally). The monetization model depends on the friction of on-premise software; once cloud computing is dominant, the economic model is much more challenging.”
  • There’s some ponderous gyrating between public cloud being good at managed hosting/services (they run the stuff well) vs. software (their features are unique/good).
• Ben’s follow-up (subscription required):
  • “ Atlas was only 8% of total revenue last year, which grew 57% year-over-year; that means that Atlas itself grew 330% year-over-year, from $3.3 million to $14.3 million. Of course cost of revenue grew 68% as well, thanks to a $4.1 million increase in hosting costs (AWS wins either way), but particularly given the addition of a free Atlas offering, those costs aren’t out of line.”
• So, with this “SSPL” thing, AWS would have to open source all of itself, or just the DocumentDB part?
  • Here: “The specific objection is that SSPL requires, if you offer services licensed under it, that you must open-source all programs that you use to make the software available as a service.
  • From Mongo’s press release on SSPL, Oct. 2018: “The only substantive change is an explicit condition that any organization attempting to exploit MongoDB as a service must open source the software that it uses to offer such service.”
• What would happen if AWS was all open source? Given that few companies could use OpenStack or make their own clouds (even with cloud.com and such), just having the code matters little to a successful cloud business, right?
  • Or, maybe it doesn’t mean all of AWS, just the DocumentDB part. Which is, really, the in the spirit of the GPL.
• The competitive tactic of forcing competitors to open source their stuff is weird.

Relevant to your interests

• Amazon reportedly acquired Israeli disaster recovery service CloudEndure for around $200M
• AWS makes another acquisition grabbing TSO Logic
• IBM Just Unveiled The First Commercial Quantum Computer
  • “Watson! Whatever happened to ‘unikernal’?” Is that one in the bag and this is the new thing?
• Announcing TriggerMesh Knative Lambda Runtime (KLR) | Multicloud Serverless Management Platform
• Serverless computing: one step forward, two steps back
• Day Two Kubernetes: Tools for Operability
• Taking the smarts out of smart TVs would make them more expensive
• OneLogin snares $100M investment to expand identity solution into new markets
• Want to get rich from bug bounties? You're better off exterminating roaches for a living
• Direct Listings Are a Thing Now
• Software Maker PagerDuty Files Confidentially for IPO
• Slack’s Financials Ahead of Listing Plans - “As of October 2018, the firm had roughly $900 million in cash on its balance sheet.”
• Fiserve buying FirstData for $22bn - FundsXpress!
• The 773 Million Record "Collection #1" Data Breach
• AWS launches Backup, a fully-managed backup service for AWS ## Non Sense
• The WELL: State of the World 2019
• Apple reportedly replaced about 10 times more iPhone batteries than it expected to
• Say hello, new logo

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Recommendations

• Matt: Neil Gaiman’s Norse Mythology.
• Brandon: DIRECTV Alexa skill.
• Coté: Peak, but read in, like 4x mode. Summary: (1.) Model the thing learned, (2.) focused exercises, (3.) coaching, (3.) using feedback loops to improve, (4.) stretching yourself. Derry Girls.