Sun’s JavaOne event is expected to bring news of Java being open sourced.
Given the lack of presence of Java on the Linux desktop, there are many who would like to see the language independent of any vendor, however well intentioned. Java is also fighting its corner for the growing rich internet applications (RIA) market, and open sourcing will certainly give it a boost against competing combinations of asynchronous Javascript and XML (AJAX) and .NET, or Ruby on Rails.
Is open source always the right way forward? Well, no actually. While there is reason to look favorably at the open source community and support calls for the open sourcing of Java, one cannot say open source is the only option for applications.
From an economic point of view it is a question of balancing the sums. A product with a niche market and high development costs best recoups its investment through closed software. Software with a large market (or potentially so), irrespective of development costs, may well flourish under open source and hence enjoy the benefits of this action.
Open sourcing allows a product rapid market adoption and better testing. Its lifetime also grows and therefore investing in support and services allows for a viable business model. If other vendors ‘steal’ the code and embed it in their products, well, that is actually encouraged!
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison recently claimed open source had no intellectual property and could be easily appropriated. The first part is not true; the second is actually the point – the greater the adoption, the stronger the product. Mr Ellison also pointed out that anyone can offer the support and swipe away that business from the originators. That is true but if the adoption is high enough there is a big enough cake for everyone to enjoy a slice.
What will not happen in open source is for one vendor to monopolize a market with a proprietary product and grow big on that – for today’s IT giants that can be an unattractive scenario.
If open source continues to grow, the days of giant vendors with lock-in products will disappear.
Source: OpinionWire by Butler Group (www.butlergroup.com)
