Boston Big Dig Software Controversy
Slashdot and Computerworld report that a software ownership dispute between software developers and the State has cost an extra $10,000,000. Seems that the developer that created the initial software refused to give the source code to the State or the developer that was awarded the 2nd phase software development contract. The lesson is not to always get the source code - developers often have legitimate reasons to retain that.
The lessen is that anyone involved in a significant software project should consider this issue up front and sort out a solution before it becomes a problem.