
Ask HN: Should we open source an iOS app? - ddtaylor
We make a product that provides a web service and companion apps for iOS and Android. Money is a problem and we are trying to prioritize what to work on and avoid dumping more money where we cannot afford it.<p>There is debate on if we should open source our iOS app because it&#x27;s the most expensive thing in terms of hiring others. Without giving away too many details we integrate with a part of the iOS API that isn&#x27;t very well documented and we&#x27;ve hired lots of people who have not added value to the product in this area and don&#x27;t want to pay for people to learn this API. Posts on the Apple developer forums seem to indicate it&#x27;s one of the bigger tarpits in the space. FWIW it also cannot be tested in the simulator.<p>The iOS and Android apps aren&#x27;t part of our secret sauce, as that lives in the web service, so we aren&#x27;t worried about someone &quot;stealing&quot; our code. However, I don&#x27;t see a clear incentive they have to contribute.<p>Thank you!
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rjplatte
That was my first thought: is there a reason for anyone to contribute? It's a
for-profit app that I assume makes you money. Why should I volunteer my free
time to work on it for you?

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timojaask
Without knowing anything about your product, I'd say most likely you won't get
any contributions. However, many companies feel that open sourcing their
product brings a lot of other benefits.

Take Artsy for example: [http://artsy.github.io/open-
source/](http://artsy.github.io/open-source/)

