#: 7727 S15/Hot Topics
    24-Oct-90  18:35:00
Sb: #7706-OSK Software
Fm: Frank Hogg 70310,317
To: James Jones 76257,562 (X)

James,

Your point is well taken. It is not my intention to have the situation you
describe. I have been in this position many times over the years suppling 68K
software that I financed for other hardware . I did not mind because I did
profit from those sales which is after all, why I am in business.

The main reason for my proposal was and is to start a discussion on the
subject. The details need to be worked out. Your input and others is what is
needed and the points raised by you need to be considered.

5 or 6 years ago I approached FoxBase about their database which at the time
ran on MSDOS and Unix. They were interested in doing a 68K port IF I gave them
lots of money and paid a hefty royalty. IF the consortium approached a company
like this the consortium would have more clout and the up front money could be
shared by the members. Their percent of the profit on sales would be
commensurate with their up front outlay. Members who did not put up the money
would not profit from the sales but they would be able to have the software
available for their machine at whatever cost the consortium decided. No one
company should or would be put in a position of unwillingly backing another
just because he was a member.

The main reason for the issue I described was to prevent needless duplication
of effort. If company A  developed program X then A could give this as part of
their hardware/software package to their customers as an incentive to buy (as
Tandy does with Deskmate). Company B would be allowed to BUY X from company A
for a reasonable amount. (The consortium would prevent abuses in these cases)
This way A would be compensated for their effort and because B would have to
PAY for X they would not have an unfair advantage.

There are many details to work out and the above may not cover all cases or be
fair as it is. However I think from this you can get the gist of what I am
trying to do. It may not be possible to do all the things outlined and some
companies may not agree with me. This is a start of the process to get everyone
to work together for the collective good and to create the greatest