Open Source Trends in Government

By Dawn M. Foster (91 posts) on December 17, 2009 at 8:00 am

Open source usage within the government has been a hot topic recently with the announcement about whitehouse.gov moving to Drupal and the memo from the Department of Defense (DoD): Clarifying Guidance on Open Source Software. Input, a research firm focused on government business, announced last week that Cloud Computing, Virtualization, Service Oriented Architecture, Open Source Software and Geospatial technologies are expected to have greater federal government adoption in the next five years driven partially by cost saving initiatives. They are predicting that open source will grow 8 percent over the next five years from $290 million to $430 million. IDG News Service's Grant Gross has some additional insights from Deniece Peterson, manager of marketing analysis at Input:

While many U.S. agencies have been using open-source software for years, the new emphasis on tightening budgets will make open-source packages more popular, Peterson predicted. In addition, many agencies will look for increased ways to customize their software using open-source packages, and some agencies will use open-source software to create private, or hybrid, clouds using open source, she said. Agencies want the ability to "have more control over the software code," Peterson said.

In related news, last week the White House asked federal agencies to publish additional data collections that had not previously been released to the public as part of broader transparency initiatives. While this isn't directly related to open source, it is a step toward openness. Chris Hankin at Open Source for America sees this as an important step in the right direction:

"Open Source For America (OSFA) applauds and supports the initiatives outlined in the Open Government Directive and the Obama Administration's continued push to make government more transparent, collaborative and participatory. While not explicitly addressing the use of open source software, we are pleased to see such a detailed plan -- encompassing open formats and open standards -- with firm deadlines attached to hold departments and agencies accountable for continuing to create an open government. Open government will enable extensive public and employee engagement and promote innovation, dramatic cost savings, and with the use of open source technologies the U.S. government can see increased improvements to their bottom line."

I see the increasing usage of cloud computing, virtualization, service oriented architecture, and open source software as part of a larger move toward more open and flexible approaches to software deployment both within governments and for businesses.

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