I actually understand how it gets to be this way though.

I literally can't touch a Government project without an Oracle license. When I talk to a salesman, the attitude is "I know you can't do this without me", contrary to salesmen for any other product in any other industry.

When I talk to a project manager, they don't ask how it will be hosted, or what the platform will be, or anything else obvious. The first question, often before a project is fined, is "how many Oracle licenses can I buy?".