FairSoftware is a new business portal to help people set up online service businesses like software developers, web designers and web publishers. The idea is you sign up, list your project and find collaborators to invest time and skills, after which you can set up an online store to sell your stuff as well. In return for their help in setting up, finding colleagues, offering legal infrastructure and a shopping cart, you pay a 9.9% fee which seems reasonable. Of course there’s nothing to stop you doing all this stuff yourself, but working collaboratively is definitely an easier way to start a business. It gets lonely sometimes, making all the decisions, eh?

The key sauce behind this service is the idea of your collaborators sharing the spoils of your success. Every time one of your products is sold, the system automatically splits out the profit according to how many shares you gave each collaborator. This is pretty neat, and is a great way to incentivize people. If I could program a paper bag, I’d definitely consider using this service. Definitely worth remembering.

 You can grow your team to keep up with your project’s success: more developers, testers, technical writers, product managers, marketers, etc. To add people, simply create a job opening and specify the number of shares you are offering. The longer contributors stay on board, the more shares vest. This way, they are committed to your project’s success.