Alfresco agonistes

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The race to zero is almost complete

It is getting harder and harder to see viable business plans for open source. The recession which were supposed to be so great for open source is having the opposite effect: Instead of customers rushing to the open source model with "paid support", customers are cutting back on support and services.

The answer from open source companies such as Alfresco (and Red Hat etc) is to offer "premium" versions with vital parts offered in ways reminiscent of the old economy proprietary software.

Where exactly are all of the advantages and customer guarantees when vital parts can die with the company?

Seems to me that the most successful model (and perhaps the only successful model excluding Red Hat) is the "collaborative foundation" model like Linux and Apache.

Mozilla have had some success with their model, but they could soon find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place if their "eyeballs" agreement with Google ends.

But only a few high-profile projects are suitable for the foundation model, and certainly only one per category.

A feeling is sneaking up on me that in 5 years we will look back at the failed open source hype and shake our head in disbelief over our naivety.

No, I'm not saying that open source will die. I'm quite certain that Linux, Apache and probably OpenOffice will exist in 5 years.

But I'm equally certain than many, many open source startups will have bowed. They are struggling already. Once customers realize that also open source products can be abandoned they will see software licensing as a kind of insurance that someone will always be willing to pick up the ball. Which is certainly not the case with many narrow open source projects.

The RMS ideology style open source is not sustainable. Open source will soon receive a healthy dose of pragmatism.

Posted by: honeymonster   Posted on: 05/17/09 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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