w3c: patent (entrance barrier)

To encourage conformance with W3C recommendations, conformance should
have as low an entry price as possible. It should be enough that
conformance renders one's products acceptable to larger markets. To add
a financial barrier for conformance enforces the dominance of W3C
sponsors such as Microsoft and Sun Microsystems at the expense of
smaller, less wealthy developers.
 
Will there be subsidies for developers unable to pay the full amount?
 
Isn't there another way, such as donations, for the W3C to generate
income? Could a "tax" on devices such as browsers or cell phones, or on
media such as ISPs or cellular services -- collected like gasoline taxes
upon sale -- meet W3C's financial burden, and help subsidize
development?
 
Can you imagine the World Health Organization charging a fee for
compliance to sanitation standards? Would such a charge encourage or
discourage compliance?
 
Sincerely,
Ivan Linderman