Skip to main content

Could this work?

I am thinking of a business idea.
We have small shops all throughout India selling computer hardware. Along with this they sell or give pirated windows OS and MS Office for free. This is no doubt illegal an the only reason MS is mum about this is probably because of their business model. They would like the world to be dependent on them so that most applications are developed for Windows. They can anytime enforce the anti-piracy crusade making people buy their OS.
Is it possible to create a niche for oneself in this market by promoting open source software? Most of the home users tend to use multi-media, web-browser and office tools like word editor and spreadsheet. With the wide gamut of Linux flavours available now and companies like Open Office spending a lot of time and talent on development, I think is it very much possible. This can even be coupled with user training in these areas. Spreading the usage of open source software among the lay users and small business users can create a strong base for the development of open source software.
Even if one such enterprise opens shop in every town and city in India, it can then have a community based support system. A common knowledge pool can be created to support existing and upcoming players. This community can then even churn out training material, methodology, support strategy for open source software. They can be also a authentic feedback system for companies developing open source software.
Till the time open source does not come into the public domain and remains the interest area of the geeks, it's spread and hence growth will be limited. The day my wife is forced to use a laptop with Ubuntu...would be the dawn of a new era!
Labels:

Comments

Kiran said…
"Till the time open source does not come into the public domain and remains the interest area of the geeks, it's spread and hence growth will be limited"

You hit the nail bang on the head! And yes - I think this could work as a sustainable business model.
8:28 pm
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What (not) to expect from a politician

  The photo has no real significance to the subject being discussed :-) Off late, I have seen a lot of my friends venting their anguish against politicians. Many of them expected the politicians to behave more responsibly, discipline the public on dos & don'ts of COVID precautions, get national priorities right and basically change the society to which they belong and are elected representatives. I think this bunch has wrong expectations from the wrong group of people. Here is why - A politician's entire existence is centred around election victory. Winning an election is their Key Performance Indicator (KPI). A consistently losing politician who is not making any effort to come to power, is not even a politician. Acceptance from society, popularity and majoritarian view are the fundamental characteristics of a politician. They have to operate within the limits of these fundamentals to maintain their existence. Isn't that why we always refer to successful politicians a
Post a Comment
Read more

How to change flat ownership in GHMC records

It's been close to a year since we bought a new flat in Hyderabad. It has been one hell of a learning exercise for the sheer amount of paper work and procedures it involved before, during or after the purchase. Buying a house in Hyderabad has been an exciting and taxing journey, so far. All through this journey, I had a desire to document my experiences so that it would help others who wished to be helped. But luck, laziness and life kept me away from this. However, I'll at least start now with an account of what needs to be done to change the ownership records in GHMC [Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation]. The first time it struck me that I need to do this is when I received a property tax notice addressed to the previous owner of the flat (we made a second hand purchase). All along I thought once I had registered with the land records department, the government would take care of updating all other records. I was so wrong! So, I rushed to the nearest Municipal Citizen
3 comments
Read more

The 2 Business Ideas

I had twitted about 2 business ideas and had promised the details would be on the blog. So here goes... JustGoa - See a different Goa every time I have been consulted at least about 15-20 times by different people for their leisure trips to Goa. This idea is a fallout of the experiences. This is a Goa specific travel company. I know there are hordes of Goan tour operators. But this one is with a different marketing strategy. This sort of concentrates on repeat business. The tours are thematic. Some of the themes would be - Chillax Religious Eco Celebrations (Weddings, Anniversaries, Receptions) Corporate (Conferences, team building exercises, product launches) The main thrust should be on maintaining the visit history of the tourists and ensuring they do not get bored with repeat visits. Aligning Marketing with capacity for special programs in monsoon, around long weekends etc. will definitely bring in a new angle to this business. 10ant.com I am not sure if there is anything like t
3 comments
Read more