Hey there,
When I started developing on this platform I released a free plugin called Whiteboard Lite and a premium version of it Whiteboard Pro. I wanted to get my name out there and make a bit of side money and also contribute something cool. I’m making this post because recently I came across a large Agency and another smaller one who created a Miro like whiteboard template and was selling it for a pretty big penny. Thing is, they were using the plugin I created but not really. They looked through the code I provided & recreated the plugin I made so that they could say it doesn’t require external plugins and the result is that my name got erased from being recognized. Then, they created a template with “their” new custom plugin and sold the pro version for 150$ and the developer license for 750$.
Now, I made the plugin free and I knew people could use or sell my work. What I don’t think is cool though is taking an idea from a brand new face in the ecosystem and not crediting or asking anything from that person. I had a free version of the plugin that they could have asked to use & for me to support for them. I think that not crediting where you get your ideas from and then profiting off the idea isn’t cool or professional. Considering they have almost 1000 installs at 50$ a pop, I have potentially made someone 50 000$. I think it’s awesome that people get inspiration from others, but not crediting is pretty nasty in my opinion.
Furthermore, the plugin is made off a completely free API. It’s free because the creator lives in Iran and no payment processors support his country, which is pretty darn sad. Someone made upwards 50k off a guy who isn’t even able to accept money for political reasons. Before I made my plugin, I made sure to contact him and asked for his permission before I can see a pro version of the plugin. You’d think this would be the norm!
I want to add that my plugin was by no means difficult to create, it was a simple connection to a library and some added features. It was my idea to implement this idea in bubble, and I could have benefited from the exposure and it would have been nice to have been asked don’t ya think?
Why make this post? It’s because I know I’m not the only one. I think as a community we should discourage this kind of opportunism and encourage crediting people for their ideas and work. There are tons of $ loving agencies here gobbling up the work of smaller developers and people who are just trying to make an honest living.
The larger agency is Rapid Dev who make genuinely cool templates and does good work. However, I think taking a closer look at where their neat ideas come from and if they are crediting them is in order. Also, I am singling them out because it applies to me, but do know they are not the only ones here doing that.
Note: I did not contact the agency about this since they never reached out to me. I also have confirmation that they did in fact take my idea because they went ahead and just forked the repository. And yes, two agencies did this! Also, I am not in dire straights at all - don’t get me wrong. I am surviving and make a good living for myself and my colleagues do as well, this post is not about money