Why Free Software Is Such A Big Deal

People have come to expect certain types of software to be free - like browsers. In fact, that's how Netscape started, making its software available for nothing. Eventually Microsoft beat them back with its own browser, Internet Explorer. But interestingly, the free browser wars are not over, according to a story in Computerworld quoting a Net Applications' study:

Mozilla Corp.'s Firefox browser is on pace to hit the 20% market-share mark next month, a Web metrics company said today. Firefox boosted its share by 0.6% in May, accounting for 18.4% of the browsers used during the month and putting it within shouting distance of a major milestone, according to Net Applications Inc. "Firefox is trending to hit 20% market share sometime in July," said Vince Vizzaccaro, the company's executive vice president of marketing, in an e-mail.

This is fascinating, not because someone other than Microsoft can give software away, but because in doing so, a company can take so much market share. It's another sign that the Redmond-based corporation needs significant change and some direction that stresses real invention.