An Open Secret

Perhaps the biggest headache companies still face in adopting OSS is not technical but legal. Despite its name, open-source software isn't always open: more than 60 licenses pertain to its use, and some licenses are not certified by OSI (the Open Source Initiative, a community-recognized body for license review and approval), according to Wurster. Although end-users don't pay to license OSS in the same way that they license a proprietary system from a traditional vendor, there are licenses that govern conditions for using the software, such as trademarks and distribution. Companies that change OSS code and then distribute the customized software outside their organizations may be required to publish the code changes, for example. This becomes an issue only if the business distributes changes externally, according to Matthew Aslett, enterprise software analyst with The 451 Group, a technology advisory firm. Companies can reduce their legal risks considerably if they subscribe to enterprise products with indemnification when acquiring OSS from commercial vendors, he says.

Despite the drawbacks that still dog OSS, Aslett says decision-makers are coming around as they see open-source successes in IT infrastructure and applications projects. "In many cases, people stick with what they know," he says. "But things are changing as people become more comfortable with open source." Given the current economic conditions, interest in OSS may soon shift from the techno-savvy to the finance-savvy.

Marshall Krantz is a freelance writer in Oakland, California.

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