Some Simple Economics of Open Source
Abstract
There has been a recent surge of interest in open source software development, which involves developers at many different locations and organizations sharing code to develop and refine programs. To an economist, the behavior of individual programmers and commercial companies engaged in open source projects is initially startling. This paper makes a preliminary exploration of the economics of open source software. We highlight the extent to which labor economics, especially the literature on ‘career concerns’, and industrial organization theory can explain many of these projects’ features. We conclude by listing interesting research questions related to open source software.
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Lerner and Tirole's paper concludes that people come to participate in open source projects because, while it provides hackers with enjoyment, it also benefits them in the long-term.
“Their paper concludes that people come to participate in open source projects because, while it provides hackers with enjoyment, it also benefits them in the long-term.”
From The sustainability of open source commons (2023) · cites this paper as Lerner & Tirole, 2002
Expected costs of OSS contribution primarily consist of the time and effort required to perform development tasks in a focal OSS project.
“Expected costs primarily consist of the time and effort required to perform development tasks in a focal OSS project (Lerner and Tirole 2002).”
From The Impact of Generative AI on Collaborative Open-Source Software Development: Evidence from GitHub Copilot  (2024) · cites this paper as Lerner and Tirole 2002
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- Authors
- Lerner, J., & Tirole, J.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Lerner, Josh
- ORCID
- Lerner, Josh
- Venue
- The Journal of Industrial Economics
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2002-06
- Volume
- 50
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 197-234
- ISSN
- 0022-1821 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-6451
- OpenAlex
- W3123336377
- Cited by
- 2,355
- References
- 2
- Citations by year
- 2026: 46 · 2025: 61 · 2024: 86 · 2023: 51 · 2022: 47 · 2021: 66 · 2020: 78 · 2019: 87 · 2018: 79 · 2017: 90 · 2016: 95 · 2015: 102 · 2014: 102 · 2013: 128 · 2012: 135
- FWCI
- 177.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Industrial Economics (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Toulouse Capitole Publications (University Toulouse 1 Capitole) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Science Applications › Open Source Software Innovations
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Digital Platforms and Economics
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Information Systems › Software Engineering Techniques and Practices
- Keywords
- open source software, career concerns, labor economics, industrial organization, programmer behavior, software development
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