The Business Case for Commercial Open Source
High Mobley nicely outlined the business case for open source last week, and not surprisingly his words generated some pretty heated comments. The open source vs. proprietary issue always brings out passionate debate on both sides.
I think the business cases Mobley covered are valid, but as some of the comments suggested there’s more to technology decisions than the fees associated with a particular software license. Technology investments always come with issues like training, ongoing maintenance, interoperability, and ease of configuration and integration. These decisions aren’t made in a vacuum where the up-front licensing costs are the only factors considered.
Sometimes open source software isn’t the best solution for a particular problem, business environment, or the personnel involved. But when open source offers the best solution for a problem—and enterprises are increasingly choosing open source over commercial software—the key is to go with a commercial open source vendor that can fill in the gaps around the issues mentioned above. Harper Mann perfectly summed up the situation in a separate blog:
…the solution is not to avoid open source, but rather to engage commercial open source. That is, work with companies that can connect and enhance what open source tools can do. Companies that serve as immediate liaisons for both the open source community and the business community. Ultimately, companies that can provide what end users need.
In short, that’s what we do here at OpenLogic. We offer the services that enterprises want (certification, support, training, updates, indemnification, and management tools) for hundreds of the most popular open source packages. This puts open source on a level playing field with proprietary software and allows companies to choose the best business solution for each situation.
