When OpenBravo — an open source ERP company — launched an open source exchange earlier today, The VAR Guy had a case of deja vu. From Digium to Red Hat to xTuple, numerous open source companies have launched online marketplaces for their customers and VARs. But can open source exchanges really stir application sales? Here are some thoughts.
Let’s start with the news and trends.
- Openbravo on January 25 launched Openbravo Exchange, a marketplace that features “production-grade apps and services that extend the use of Openbravo ERP.”
- Digium on January 21 officially launched Asterisk Exchange, a marketplace for the open source IP PBX. Digium CEO Danny Windham explained potential VAR and partner opportunities in this FastChat Video with The VAR Guy. Digium also is launching Asterisk Forge to help developers work with one another. The move is somewhat akin to GroundWork Open Source’s Monitoring Forge launch.
- xTuple, another open source ERP specialist, launched xChange Online App Store in mid-2009. As did Compiere.
The list likely goes on and on… but The VAR Guy is pressed for time. The key question: Can open source exchanges help VARs to quickly find and assemble customer solutions?
Red Hat Exchange: An Update
Before you answer, consider the situation with Red Hat Exchange. Launched in 2007, the Red Hat Exchange sounded promising. And The VAR Guy was guilty of hyping the effort quite a bit. But over time, Red Hat gradually rethought its exchange efforts.
Visit the original site now (http://rhx.redhat.com) and it seems non-responsive. Perform a Google Search for Red Hat Exchange, and the top Red Hat hit directs readers to a partner locator tool. Hmmm…
Time for The VAR Guy to check in with Red Hat to check the status of their exchange.
In the meantime, our resident blogger will continue to watch exchange efforts at multiple open source companies. They’re promising initiatives. But success certainly isn’t guaranteed.
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Below is a blog post that provides a bit more detail, including how Openbravo Exchange provides multiple opportunities for the channel:
http://observationsonerp.blogspot.com/2010/01/launch-of-openbravo-exchange-erp.html
Disclaimer: I work for Openbravo.
John: The VAR Guy appreciates the additional info. Please keep our resident blogger posted as Openbravo continues to grow the Exchange.
-TVG
“But can open source exchanges really stir application sales?”
Of course not, since you’re not selling software applications any more, you’re selling support.
Lawrence: Hmmmm…. You caught The VAR Guy using a poor choice of words. Our resident blogger stands corrected and sees your point. The better choice of words: Can open source exchanges really stir application demand and support revenue?
-TVG
Lawrence: one key Openbravo Exchange differentiator for our channel is that we are enabling third parties to sell non open source, commercial applications based on the Openbravo ERP open source core. Openbravo ERP remains open source, but the license agreement of the commercial applications is such that you can deploy them only in conjunction with the Professional Edition of the open source application.
So the net effect that we are aiming for is for Openbravo Exchange to stir the sales of third party commercial applications, which in turn will drive demand for services (support and others) for the open source project and corresponding subscription revenues. – pjuvara, CTO of Openbravo
Paolo: Thanks for the additional perspectives on Openbravo Exchange. Please keep The VAR Guy posted as you begin to see trends within the exchange.
-TVG
Here at xTuple, we have a mix of free and commercial apps as well. All products in the xTuple xChange (http://www.xtuple.com/xchange) run on both the free PostBooks Edition and the commercially licensed Standard and Manufacturing Editions of xTuple ERP. (That’s not hard to do, since the GUI client is exactly the same across all three platforms, and the only difference lies in additional functionality in the database.)
Likewise, partners can sell commercially licensed apps or make their apps available for free download; we use the same “store” to support both.
Cheers,
Ned
Ned: Thanks for offering more background about the xTuple xChange. The VAR Guy appreciates your insights. Please keep them coming. Oh, and thanks to your team for the channel briefings.
-TVG
“Free” versus “commercial” — see, that’s another misuse of the “free” in “free software”. “Free software” can most certainly be commercial and make money. Unless, of course, what your exchange is offering is merely “freeware”, which is crippled versions of proprietary software offered at no charge.
No, what I said was “free PostBooks Edition and the commercially licensed Standard and Manufacturing Editions.” Free meaning, free of license fee. But to your point, we certainly do offer support and services around the PostBooks Edition – as well as the commercially-licensed Editions.
I think the same holds for many of the license-free items on the xChange; many of our partners make such itesm available at no charge, and see services/support/customization engagements from that initial interest. Others choose to offer commercially-licensed software for purchase and download.
Both models work, and our community (and product) are big enough to accomodate both.
If you’re having trouble understanding, here’s a simple test: does your software guarantee the user the Four Freedoms? If not, then it cannot be called “Free”, can it?
Um, yes it does. Have you looked at our software? PostBooks is licensed under the CPAL, the OSI-approved successor to the Mozilla license.