Open Options | Results in business & government

Open source continues to grow in popularity among businesses and governments. This acceptance and success does not necessarily mean open source is a good choice for schools. However, these results may illustrate the maturity and potential of open source software.

Business
Government

Business

Penguin Powered sticker on a school computer

As businesses have grown more dependent on the Internet they've used more open source software. As Linux and other powerful solutions mature, major corporations are eager to explore the potential advantages, especially cost.

Each week brings new examples of deployment and alleged savings. For example, IBM will be supplying thousands of Linux-based cash registers to Regal Entertainment, the American movie theater company. (Economist, 2002) Verizon, the telecom company, says they "saved $6 million in equipment costs by moving its programmers to Linux computers." (Shankland, 2002, Verizon) Dell and HP-Compaq have been offering open source solutions for years to businesses and individuals. Sony's new line of Cocoon Internet/multimedia devices run on Linux.

Some financial companies have been especially vocal about joining the open source movement. For example, Merrill Lynch is doing "a top-down... large-scale Linux deployment in an effort to cut their costs and boost revenue." (DiCarlo, 2002) Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse First Boston, and the Goldman Sachs Group are deploying open source solutions.

E-Trade and Amazon.com have chosen open source. Amazon.com allegedly saved $17 million in technology and telecommunications costs in one quarter, due in part to their migration to Red Hat Linux. (Adelson, 2002) Hollywood special effects powerhouses have used open source for years. Pixar (Monsters Inc.), Weta Digital (The Lord of the Rings), and Industrial Light and Magic (Star Wars: Episode II) use Linux and other open source solutions. (Bruce Perens, a leader of the Open Source Initiative, is a former employee of Pixar.)

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Government

Open source software has become a visible issue in many governments. For example, Germany is deploying Linux and the open source model at the federal, state and community levels. Secretary Siegmar Mosdorf argues that open source is more secure than proprietary software. (Gillespie, 2000) Minister Otto Schilly explains that Germany is seeking independence from any one vendor, while "creating more diversity in the computer field." (BBC, 2002, IBM)

In Peru, Congressman Edgar Villanueva introduced a bill that would require open source solutions for all government computer systems. While Villanueva argues from principle, he also points to cost. Many schools in Peru are so poor they cannot afford to pay their water and energy bills. Villanueva explains, "(T)hey are so poor that they could not afford these services, and the provision was being interrupted.... Does it make sense in this context to use tax-payer's money to pay Microsoft licenses?" (d'Empaire, 2002)

Venezuela has announced a policy that requires open source solutions for all government computer systems. The policy also requires that "all software developed for the government must be licensed under the GPL." (Proffitt, 2002) According to Minister Pérez-Martí, "the government and the people of Venezuela were increasingly concerned that over 75 percent of the funds for software licenses went to foreign nations, 20 percent to foreign support agencies, and only 5 percent to Venezuelan programmers." (Ibid.) The new policy will try to keep more money and expertise in the country.

Mexico is also turning to open source to save money and increase national independence. Open source means "they're not just sending their money to the United States all the time," explains Gary Chapman. (Scheeres, 2001) Mexico has been criticized for poorly implementing open source solutions but is continuing to try to save money for social programs.

China is promoting Linux and other open source solutions in its government and to its citizens. The government favors Chinese-developed open source software, like the Chinese Academy of Science's Red Flag Linux. Like other countries, China wants to build its computing infrastructure and economy with domestic spending and expertise. In contrast to typical open source motives, the communist government may also prefer open source because they can better monitor and control their citizens' computing. (BBC, 2002, Linux)

Singapore and Australia are also exploring open source policies and solutions. As in business or education, decisionmakers in government sometimes discover they're already using open source on the backend.

The United States government is still largely focused on proprietary solutions. At the federal level, the use of open source is limited and rare. As one IT official explained, "Linux is not on our list of approved operating systems... That generally dictates whether it's used or not." (McCullagh & Zarate, 2002) Open source is used at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Air Force, and Pinellas County, Florida. (Galli, 2003)

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