Free-Libre Open Source Software as a Public Policy Choice (original) (raw)
Related papers
Rethinking free, libre and open source software
Knowledge, Technology & Policy, 2006
This special issue includes seven articles that make significant contribution to the literature pertaining to knowledge and public policy around Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS). Focusing on questions in two themes (i) motivation and organization and (ii) public policy, the articles in this volume develop new analytic models and report on new empirical findings, as an important step in bridging the wide gap that exists in public policy literature around FLOSS. Warning against rhetorical pitfalls that have been prevalent in FLOSS research, this introduction starts with a short history of FLOSS development, continues with a brief thematic literature review and review of the misconceptions surrounding FLOSS, and concludes with a first introduction of the articles that follow.
New Perspectives on Public Goods Production: Policy Implications of Open Source Software
Law & Economics, 2006
Globally, the rapid rise of Open Source Software (OSS) development has drawn the intense attention of the public sector as well as the private sector. For a variety of policy reasons, governments throughout the world are now adopting various legislative and administrative strategies that support the development of OSS. This article reveals some empirical data regarding the trend of evolving OSS policies globally. Additionally, this article investigates why so many governments are considering support of OSS development, and weighs the pros and cons of such policies. The ultimate conclusion is that when two systems are equally suitable, governments may reasonably choose OSS over proprietary software because software industry market failures may justify such support of OSS development. While governments considering supporting OSS are primarily concerned with significant switching costs and incompatibility problems, OSS is actually superior to proprietary software because it increases c...
Policy recommendations for public administrators on free and open source software usage
Telematics and Informatics, 2014
Free and open source software, holding a strategic position in knowledge economy, reaffirms the critical role of governments and regional authorities in establishing strategies for integrating effective and sustainable Information Technology solutions in the public sector towards economic growth and social welfare. Moreover, public services, organisations and territorial administrations collectively represent a major software user with great impact on the software market. In this sense, software selection in the public sector is a highly political and strategic process; various collateral implications and policy aspects should be considered in order to reach the best possible decisions. Within this context, this manuscript provides policy recommendations on issues and challenges pertaining to the use of free and open source software by European public administrations. The recommended policy actions are mainly based on review of the current policy framework. The main goal of this manuscript is to contribute in providing policy orientations and proposing actions that can help governments, public administrations and European institutions fully harvest the benefits of open source.
Public Subsidies for Open Source? Some Economic Policy Issues of the Software Market
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000
This paper discusses the economic merits of direct or indirect governmental support for open source projects. Software markets differ from standard textbook markets in three important respects that may give rise to market failures: (i) large economies of scale, (ii) crucially important innovations, (iii) significant network effects and switching costs. We analyze the differences between proprietary software and open source software with respect to these market features and ask whether open source as an alternative to proprietary software can mitigate these problems. Then we discuss the implications of various forms of governmental support for open source.
PUBLIC POLICIES IN THE SOFTWARE MARKET: REGIONAL ISSUES CONCERNING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
hs-stat.com
A topic recently discussed in the literature about software markets concerns government policies supporting open-source software, the purpose of such an intervention being the prevention of failures in that market and ultimately increase social welfare. Possible interventions include mandated adoption and information campaigns. Our study investigates the relationship between FOSS (free and open source software) prevalence on the one hand, and economic and human development indicators on the other, across about 130 countries. We find that FOSS prevalence is related to education rather than to economic well-being, which is largely in line with findings reported in the scientific literature obtained using approaches different from ours. Furthermore, clustering our sample of countries with respect to several indicators permits insight into how governments have already implemented policies in public agencies, and leads to suggestions about possible future policies.
Since 1837, when Charles Babbage discovered his machine of data analysis, until 1886, where in Berne, the Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works was signed, the protection of intellectual property developed at a frantic pace until now. The revolution in this field took place during last thirty years. Since 1980's and onwards the science of law has been required to cover radical developments and novel concepts, like the free and open source software movement. These developments affect most developing countries, each of which has separate legal background and historical development. This paper examines, from a historical overview of the international context and the circumstances of developing countries using Balkans as example, the existing legal framework and the actual conditions of open source usage in public and private institutions. In parallel it examines the reconciliation achieved due to the different developments and the process of European integration. Furthermore since most of the development of software has been originated from the United States and the UK, a comparison is taking place between the continental family of legislation with the Anglo-Saxon family of Law mainly examining the impact of the recent accession of US in the Berne Convention. Indicative in this discussion would be the experience of Intellectual Property in UK, where the IP legislation has been established as a concept for the first time, and what could be the lessons shared. Furthermore it analyses the prospects, developments and the consolidation of copyright law open source software.
Open Source vs Closed Source Software: Public Policies in the Software Market
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2003
This paper analyses the impact of public policies supporting open source software (OSS). Users can be divided between those who know about the existence of OSS, the "informed" adopters, and the "uninformed" ones; the presence of uniformed users yields to market failures that justify government intervention. We study three policies: i) mandatory adoption, when government forces public agencies, schools and universities to adopt OSS, ii) information campaign, when the government informs the uninformed users about the existence and the characteristics of OSS and, iii) subsidisation, when consumers are payed a subsidy when adopting OSS. We show that the second policy enhances welfare, the third is always welfare decreasing while mandatory adoption can be either good or bad for society depending on the number of informed and uninformed adopters. We extend the model to the presence of network effects and we show that strong externalities require "drastic" policies.
FLOSS (FREE, LIBRE, OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE) LICENSING: TRENDS, EXPOSITION AND CRITIQUE
Free, open source, libre 1 software, FOSS 2 , FLOSS 3 or LOSS 4 -however one chooses to describe non-proprietary software -is all protected by copyright but subject to a vast array of different licensing conditions. The Free Software Foundation approves some licences, the Open Source Initiative approves many more, whilst many licences are created for particular projects both inside and outside of the software realm. However, the GNU GPL, with its contributory commons, dominates this scene. The reasons for this are analysed, especially in the context of Spain and Latin American countries where the software and this licence proliferate. The GNU GPL has recently been revised, although older versions will continue in use. This paper gives an overview of FLOSS (using an all inclusive term) licences, considers alternative legal paradigms and hones in on the GPL's most recent renaissance -discussing its terms and wider implications.