Position statement
Open source software is seeing explosive growth around the world. It is fundamentally altering the information technology landscape in much the same way as the Internet has over the last decade. Governments need to recognize this trend and harness the open source movement for the benefit of their citizens and public institutions.
Open source software is not new. The 30-year-old open source TCP/IP software is the foundation of today's Internet. IBM has a rich history of open source successes from our early involvement with Linux to our work with Apache, Eclipse and the Globus alliance. We have thousands of employees currently working on the development of open source software.
Open source
Open source software is software that is distributed under an open source license. The open source license gives anyone who is interested the right to access the program's source code and to copy, modify, and redistribute the program on a royalty free basis. There are many different open source licenses, but these characteristics are common amongst all of them. The most popular open source software programs also use an open source development methodology. An open source methodology provides any interested programmer with access into the program development process, and a democratic, open means for development and enhancement of the program. Software can be open source even if the developers do not adopt an open source development methodology.
Open source software is complementary to, and is often included in, commercial software. Most commercial software vendors today include some open source code in their commercial products. Open source software should not be confused with low priced or no price software. The mere fact that a software program is available for free on the Internet does not mean that it is open source.
Open source software can be an important source of innovation because it brings together people from different backgrounds and perspectives to work on and solve common business and IT problems. It is a popular tool for the research community. And, its use is exploding within the university community, which is often the incubator for cutting-edge research and, subsequently, wealth-creating innovations.
Open source software is also an excellent approach for driving emerging standards and, in many cases; an open source software project can become the common implementation of a standard that is used by a large number of IT vendors and customers. The Apache Web Server is a good example of this.
In short, open source software is already a beneficial part of most national IT infrastructure; it is high quality, collaborative and inexpensive.
Policy
IBM believes that open source software should be leveraged as a part of a national IT architecture but open standards are the true facilitators of a smarter, more agile and transparent government.
Open standards enable the seamless connection of internal and external entities using different technologies. They allow quick adjustment to changing government needs and processes, and the rapid building of new solutions that involve multiple hardware and software platforms. These best-of-bred solutions will, in many cases, include open source software, but they will just as often include open standards-based, commercial software.
Consequently, software procurement policy should focus on open standards to allow the broadest choice possible from a level playing field. These policies will empower local companies, which often have niche solutions and lack the resources of larger companies, to fully participate in government procurements.
Recommendations
We encourage government to consider the following policy steps to promote open source.
- Create government IT architecture and smarter government infrastructure that ensures software interoperability based on open standards. And, require open standards based interoperability for any government investment in software infrastructure.
- Evaluate open source as part of national information technology, research and development and economic development strategies and understand how it can increase reliability and security, improve service to citizens, and create economic opportunities.
- Ensure that software procurement rules demand "openness" and enable a level playing field among commercial competitors as well as open source communities. IBM opposes technology mandates or preferences that discriminate against either commercial or open source solutions in public sector procurements.
- Base software procurement decisions on objective and measurable criteria, such as cost effectiveness, functionality, interoperability, security and flexibility, performance, support for open standards, the effect on local economies, the adoption of open file formats, and the adaptability to future technologies.
- Support research and development programs that employ the open source model, just as programs that employ other models are supported. Ensure that research and development terms, including license terms, promote commercialization.
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