Source Code Escrow: Are You Just Following The Herd?, CIO.com

Growing up, mothers train their children to resist mindlessly following their peers by asking the glib question: "if your friend jumped off a bridge, would you?" This simple question is packed with insight. Independent thought that questions others' habits, beliefs and actions is a hallmark of maturity. However, today's business culture sometimes fails this childhood test.

Take source code escrow. Without truly considering it, many organizations have a standing policy to require software developers to escrow source code of products the organization is licensing. If organizations would carefully analyze the risk / return investment, the business case for source code escrow arrangements would almost always come up negative. Dealmakers and lawyers spend countless hours negotiating escrow terms and conditions and pay escrow agents like Iron Mountain thousand of dollars to maintain the escrow account. This