I think about it, and I realize that Cisco et al. were essentially making money without producing corresponding wealth - a sort of bubble waiting for someone to come along and pop it.
They produced wealth - they turned raw materials, people, and money into telecom. They just charge a price very close to the total value they create, so they capture a large part of the wealth they create. Asterisk creates the wealth, captures none (or very little) of the value, so it's there for the taking.
90% of Americans used to be farmers. Think of where we'd be if agricultural machinery hadn't destroyed the farming industry.