Author
of the Open
Source definition
Bruce Perens.
courtesy:
perens.com |
Perens, a founder
of the open source
movement, is the
author of the Open
Source Definition and co-founder of
the Open
Source Initiative. Before
becoming involved
in Open Source he
was a computer graphics
expert who spent
12 years at Pixar
Animation Studios.
Unlike GNU creator
Richard Stallman,
Perens believes that
Free Software, and
non-free retail software
can co-exist. Perens’ software
universe consists
of Three Paradigms: Traditional
Retail Software like
most proprietary
programs released
by Microsoft, Contract
/ In-House Development
Software,
developed by private
companies and individuals,
and open
source.
According to Perens
in the Traditional
Retail Software model
10% of money spent
on software goes
toward actual product
development. The
rest of the cost
of the software subsidizes
advertising, retail
floor space and cost
of related business.
Perens asserts that
in order for a software
product to be successful
in this paradigm
it must appeal to
the masses otherwise
it will not be profitable. For
certain types of products
like TurboTax, the
Traditional Software
Model is an appropriate
business model. Nearly
everyone files taxes,
so the product appeals
to the masses. Additionally
users need yearly
updates based on
extensive professional
tax law knowledge.
The Contract / In-House
Development Model
is, according to
Perens, useful in
cases where a company
is looking for a
specific advantage
over its competition. His
example is Amazon.com’s
interest matching
suggestions for shoppers. When
searching for a product,
the Web site suggests
other products based
on information collected
on buying trends. The
program that collects,
analyzes and makes
these “smart” suggestions
is what Perens calls ”differentiating
software.” Amazon
doesn't make money
off the sale of this
suggestion software;
it makes money off
of the sale of merchandise
as a result of shoppers
using the software. “(Amazon’s
interest matching
software) lives in
the cost center while
the sale of books
is Amazon’s
profit center,” said
Perens in an interview.
This software gives
Amazon.com a competitive
advantage, something
that they are not
willing to share
with their competitors.
Open source’s
primary advantage,
according to Perens,
is the development
model’s advantage
in creating non-differentiating
software like a computer’s
operating system
and basic functions
like word processing,
email and Web browsing. By
distributing these
types of programs
as open source it
is possible to share
the cost and risk
of development among
many parties. Perens
argues that the benefit
of open source is
that anyone who is
interested in the
software can participate
in enhancing it,
sharing the overhead
of software development
and saving costs
all around.
Open source software,
according to Perens,
should not be expected
to make money for
a company and is
not an ideal model
to for the creation
of software to be
sold for a profit.
In his model, companies
who wish to make
a profit from development
should be focused
on creating customized
business solutions
or highly specialized
products such as
TurboTax.
Bruce Perens
is a leader in
the Free Software
and Open Source
communities. He
has worked on numerous
projects to promote
open source software
in business including
the Open Source
Definition and
the Bruce Perens’ Open
Source Series books,
which were released
under an open source
license. He
is currently on
the board of directors
of Open Source
Risk Management,
which offers insurance
plans to protect
corporate Linux
users from potential
liability as a
result of SCO lawsuits. |