What happens on 1 January 2030?

Elba's license switches to MIT. The source is already in the HTML file; the switch removes the ‘please pay for it’ layer.

Is this the same as source-available?

No. Source-available means you can read it but not use it freely. Mortalware becomes fully free-and-open on a fixed date.

Why not just open source it now?

Because paying the makers for a few years buys careful maintenance. The point is the sunset, not the paywall.

Guides/Mortalware

What is mortalware? Software that dies into the commons

Mortalware is software that is sold for a while and then, on a pre-declared date, becomes open source and free for everyone — forever. It is a small idea with a large consequence: the maker cannot rent-seek their way past the finish line.

Why give it away

Because the value of a small, useful tool is highest when it is new and shrinks over time. Mortalware makes that curve honest: the price falls every year and reaches zero on the announced date.

Elba's date is 1 January 2030. On that morning it becomes MIT-licensed. Not disabled. Freed.

What the buyer gets that a subscription can't offer

Permanence. Your copy will keep working whether the maker is still around or not. If they vanish, the file still runs. If they change their mind, the license still says what it said.

How mortalware differs from ‘eventually open source’

‘Eventually open source’ is a promise. Mortalware writes the date into the license the day it ships. There is no ‘we're evaluating our roadmap’ escape hatch.

Questions people actually ask

What happens on 1 January 2030?: Elba's license switches to MIT. The source is already in the HTML file; the switch removes the ‘please pay for it’ layer.
Is this the same as source-available?: No. Source-available means you can read it but not use it freely. Mortalware becomes fully free-and-open on a fixed date.
Why not just open source it now?: Because paying the makers for a few years buys careful maintenance. The point is the sunset, not the paywall.

Take the island

Elba is one HTML file. It runs locally in a Chromium browser, seals a folder with AES-256-GCM, never phones home, and becomes open source on 1 January 2030.

€49MMXXVI· now ·
€39MMXXVII2027
€29MMXXVIII2028
€19MMXXIX2029
FreeMMXXX2030

the price falls each year · free to all 1 jan 2030

Take the island — €49

pay once · no account · nothing leaves

Related guides

Software that becomes free over time (and why that's the point)
A short case for software with a scheduled, declining price that reaches zero. Elba's price falls every year until it's free in 2030.
Why encryption software should be open source, eventually
Closed-source encryption is a promise you can't verify. Elba is source-visible today and becomes MIT open source on 1 January 2030.
One-time-purchase encryption software (and why it still exists)
Encryption software you buy once, keep forever. Elba is €49 one-time in 2026, declining every year until it is free in 2030.