> The issue in the real world is that's not how the software industry actually works, 99% of the time.
What would be a more appropriate model from accounting perspective?
What would be a more appropriate model from accounting perspective?
Part of the complication here is companies generally really like amortizing stuff. It lets you smooth your profit across years which is usually better both for tax purposes and for your financial reporting for the market. So this kind of change is fine or even good for a company like Google, but can really suck for a small bootstrapped SAAS. This is why I'd allow companies to pick, with some degree of latitude.