Speaking at an Australian Service for Knowledge of Open Source Software (ASK-OSS) legal seminar in Sydney on Tuesday, Waugh said there is a context to "why we are doing this" in the world of software.

"I thought I'd start and say something possibly controversial," Waugh said.

"Glasnost is often regarded as meaning freedom of speech, [but] it's kind of dismantling the autocracy in Russia and disabling the power of the autocracy to dominate everything else. And Perestroika was the restructuring."

When it comes to free software, Waugh said it is really a phase of Glasnost in the technology industry.

"We are undergoing this horrible feeling of 'vomit at the back of your mouth' Perestroika restructuring," he said. "It's going to hurt a lot of companies, but what it will result in is a better freedom for everyone and better business for everyone."