Open Source is not immune to monopoly
The author argues that large Open Source Software (OSS) projects can develop monopolistic behaviors similar to those in capitalist markets. To maintain ecosystem health, the author suggests breaking monolithic projects into smaller, interoperable components to prevent anticompetitive dynamics.
Why it matters
This perspective challenges the assumption that open-source development is inherently immune to the power imbalances found in traditional corporate monopolies.
The recent fiasco involving Linus Torvalds running Linux like the privileged man that he is and entirely missing the central points of the arguments made by people who don’t enjoy his kind of privilege reminds me that there are some OSS projects that have become so large, so important, and so monolithic, that the behavior of their project leadership becomes indistinguishable from a monopoly/monopsony.
Turns out, OSS is not immune to monopoly/monopsony after all, and I think one big part of a possible solution to this problem is the same one that should be applied to monopolies/monopsonies in capitalist markets: forcing interop of smaller components.
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