At 03:02 PM 1/21/2010, OrionWorks - Steven V Johnson wrote:
Peatbog sez:
> The cost is 419 euros per year. Here are the terms:
> http://www.steorn.com/orbo/licensing/
Thanks for the clarification. The "initiation fee" is certainly way
too steep for my tastes! Interesting that it's an annual fee. One
assumes that the renewable annual fee is in order to receive key
future "developments".
Sure. Or payments. Remember, I proposed a way to turn the initiated
into legal investors who participate in the growth.
As you have previously speculated, it might seem dubious to assume
that Storn would be able to keep all the garage inventor Robin Hoods
out there from spreading the information wealth throughout the
Internet.
It might seem that way. But we already know that a fair number of
people have forked over the dough. I haven't seen any illegal
disclosures yet. So, at least, we must allow the possibility of it
being kept quiet. And, suppose this:
If the secret is disclosed, Steorn stands to lose a lot of money.
Therefore, in the agreement, I would put a liquidated damages
provision that provides for a specified payment, a large one, if the
person signing discloses the material. Further, if they keep the
initiated happy, reasonably, the motivation to bypass this,
neglecting personal risk, and reveal it through some clandestine
means, goes down.
All it would take is one disgruntled licensee who has a survivable
case at law, and it would be over for Steorn. So I conclude that
whatever they are disclosing to people who fork over the money, is
sufficient to satisfy them enough that they aren't motivated to
expose the scheme.
It would be possible to get around this, all it would take is some
clandestine organization. I know how it could be done, very low cost,
it would work, and I doubt it could be prevented without Steorn
shooting itself in the foot. But I'm not going to do it. Why bother?
We are likely to know, sooner or later, what was going on, and I
don't see anyone being actually fleeced of anything except maybe their time.
Talk about full disclosure: Steorn has paid for ads calling their
idea "blarney," etc. Well? If you didn't pay attention to that, it's
your own damn fault and, I'd say, you deserved to have your time
wasted. Congratulations, Steorn, you are performing a service even if
you have no leg to stand on with the overunity claims.
And, of course, if I'm wrong and you *really do have something*, I'd
seriously wonder why you are taking this pseudo-con-game approach,
because you wouldn't need to do it. But what do I know?
(Much, but not necessarily enough!)
This would seem to conform my previous premise that the only way
Steorn hopes to make any real money would be through a cut in the
profits from the sale of products utilizing technology that uses ORBO
technology. It seems to confirm my suspicion that Steorn is banking on
a "belief" that their ORBO technology is valid.
Or enough curiosity, coupled with sufficient spare cash.
