[giancarlostoro]

Reminds me of the time a former employer which shall remain nameless paid a Senior Developer to spend an entire year coding something a $15,000 license from the maintainers of the original library would have given them. So lets spend 6 figures to save 15 grand or whatever.

This was a CTO burning funds, and that does not even cover the maintenance costs, especially as the original library changes and becomes drastically more modern.

[aleph_minus_one]

> Reminds me of the time a former employer which shall remain nameless paid a Senior Developer to spend an entire year coding something a $15,000 license from the maintainers of the original library would have given them. So lets spend 6 figures to save 15 grand or whatever.

You argumentation assumes that the goal was saving money.

On the other hand, if the company's goal is to become a little bit more independent of this library (and their licensing fees), this approach often makes a lot of sense.

[vkou]

You're assuming that the goal was making the company more successful.

On the other hand, if the CTO's goal is to grow his empire with no regard to the well-being of the company, this approach makes a lot of sense.