Study on the effect of open source software in public organisations
The European Commission's Information Society and Media DG has published a call for tenders for a 'study on the effect on the development of the information society of European public bodies making their own software available as open source'. The study should investigate the necessary conditions for the publication of such software: - Is all software suitable for publication or not; are there any legal barriers in the Member States for the adoption of such a policy and under what licence(s) should the software be published? - With a view to maximising the potential benefit of publishing the software, should new public software developments take particular requirements into account (such as more emphasis on interoperability, standards, design allowing adaptation to multilingualism, improved documentation etc.)? - Would such a policy contribute to standardisation processes (de facto or de jure)? - Would the opportunity for re-use lead to cost-savings, better systems and accelerate uptake? - Are there any negative side effects (such as unintended interference with the market), and how should such side effects be handled? The study should include case studies.For further information, please contact: European Commission Directorate-General Information Society and Media Directorate D - Network and Communication Unit D/3 - Software Technologies Attn: Dirk van Rooy BU29 4/67 B-1049 Brussels Tel +32-2-296 9956 Fax +32-2-296 7018 E-mail: dirk.vanrooy@cec.eu.int To see the full details of the call, please consult the following web address: http://ted.publications.eu.int/udl?REQUEST=Seek-Deliver&LANGUAGE=en&DOCID=096840-2005(opens in new window)