Is this a good idea?

A programmer writes a bit of software and offers it for sale for $5. When they reach 5,000 sales they release the source code under a GPL-like license and the product becomes free.

The programmer makes $25,000 for their effort, early adopters pay a small premium, everyone benefits from the new free software. The community decides as a group if they want to buy the source code.

Does anything like this already exist?

I was recently at a BBQ and stood by the grill for a while watching a football game on a flat panel TV.  It was tucked under the roof of a sort of gazebo which also housed the grill, a counter, and a sink.  I asked the owner of the house if he was concerned about the elements getting to the TV.  He said, “It’s like  $200 and it’s been there for a few months already.  Maybe I only get one season out of it.  An outdoor TV costs like 3 grand.”

This is classic Wal-Mart Effect.

If you know nothing about maintaining a mower, Wal-Mart has helped make that ignorance irrelevant: At $99.96, $122.00, or even $138.00, the lawn mowers at Wal-Mart are cheap enough to be disposable. Use one for a season, store it, and if you can’t start it the next spring (Wal-Mart won’t help you out with that), put it at the curb and go buy another one.  That kind of pricing changes not he just the economics at the low end of the lawn-mower market, it changes expectations of customers throughout the market.  Why would you buy a walk-behind mower from Snapper that costs $519.00?

As I mentioned yesterday, the week leading up to a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournament is crazy and hectic.  The staff of US Grappling is firing off dozens of emails, making phones calls, confirming reservations, buying supplies, making copies, etc…

When an event winds down on Saturday (or Sunday) evening most grapplers head home with another tournament behind them.  For us, we’re just past the halfway point.  Mats have to be returned home.  Things we rented like the truck, PA, tables, chairs, etc have to be returned.  Results (full brackets) have to be entered into the computer and uploaded to the web.  Our website has to be updated.  There may be customer service issues to resolve.  There’s accounting to do, and a staff to pay.  The work continues for several days.

Of course, there’s always something to do to at US Grappling, not just before and after events.  Event planning may begin as early as a year before the event. And beyond the events there are constant discussions about rules, referee certification, pricing, merchandise, video, and the web.  The work of US Grappling never ends.

Here’s my question – is this stuff of interest to competitors?  Would you want to read a separate blog, written by the staff of US Grappling, explaining what we’re putting in to our events, what we’re planning, what we’re thinking about, etc?

It would be hosted over on usgrappling.us, and could also serve as an feedback mechanism for grapplers. We’re constantly seeking feedback (good and bad) from the competitors and spectators.

Leave a comment here if you think this is something you’d want to read.

If you’re going to buy a slow-cooker, it’s going to be a Crock-Pot by Rival.  It’s the original slow-cooker, and it really owns the market.  That’s an example from yesterday’s discussion on Proprietary Eponyms. But some brands manage to own their respective markets without having the brand’s name become synonymous with the broader class of products.  They are simply the recognized leader – so much so that you may not even be able to name a competitor.

How many times do buy something only to have it break after a couple of dozen uses, then replace it with the same brand, over and over.  Normally you break that cycle and move on to a different brand, right?  Yet somehow Oster gets a pass here.  Most people only use their blender a couple of times a year, and typically to crush ice.  A blender can only crush but so much ice before it gives up the ghost.  I guess we just accept that crushing ice is a lot to ask, and you’re going to have to replace them from time to time.  After a long night of crushing ice for margaritas my dead Osterizer invariably gets replaced with another Osterizer.

If you’ve ever canned food before you know who makes Mason jars.  I’m sure there are lots of companies, yet it’s the cursive Ball logo that just popped in your head.  If not, you must have thought of Kerr.

When I need kitchen matches I get Diamond.  I don’t think I’ve ever bought any other type.  Diamond makes other things, like lighters and plastic cutlery, but it’s the Strike Anywhere matches that I always associated them with.

If I asked my poker playing friends about playing cards a bunch of brands would come to mind – Bicycle, Bee, Aviator, Hoyle – but they are all brands of the United States Playing Card Company.

If someone calls you Mr. (Something) you must be pretty darn good at it.  Or at least that’s what we should believe.  Personally I’ve never had much luck with Mr. Coffee’s pots, but that’s great marketing.  And they did invent the automatic drip coffeemaker afterall.   What ever happened to Mrs. Tea? Now they make Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Makers. Why would I want Mr Coffee to make my tea?

I don’t know anything about fishing, but I know who makes fishing line – Stren. They were the first to make nylon fishing line and they’re still the number one brand.  DuPont created Stren 2 decades after they invented nylon. Now Stren is part of a family of other fishing products with names I’m familiar with such as Abu Garcia and Ugly Stik.

Owning any one of these brands would be a great way to make money.  Owning every one of these brands, as the Jarden Corporation of Rye, New York does is an even better way to make money.  But Jarden knows the very best way to make money – they make money.  Jarden supplies the United States Mint and the Royal Canadian Mint with copper plated zinc penny blanks, as well as plated steel and zinc for coinage in other markets.

Now that’s making money.