In India, open source adoption has transitioned from mere hype to reality. It has graduated from a model driven purely by the developer’s community to one where the industry is the key driver. For CIOs, the benefits of open source software (OSS) have moved beyond cost and its usage has expanded beyond operating system to core applications.

According to a Gartner study, open source software will be embedded in 80 percent of all commercial software by 2012. The report said that, “By 2012, 80 percent of all commercial software will include elements of open source technology. Many open source technologies are mature, stable and well supported. They provide significant opportunities for vendors and users to lower their total cost of ownership (TCO) and increase returns on investment. Ignoring this will put companies at a serious competitive disadvantage. Embedded open source strategies will become the minimal level of investment that most large software vendors will find necessary to maintain competitive advantages during the next five years.” As per industry estimates, open source in India has been clocking a steady 20-30 percent growth year-on-year over the last 3 years and this is expected to continue.                  

Benefits of unlocking the code to freedom            
Today CIOs have gone beyond their myopic view of open source and are embracing it for its myriad benefits. “We moved to open source not for cost but for the independence and freedom. With open source, upgradation and availability is easier, and operating system skills are easily available. We have deployed it in areas like operating system, sales application and security,” says Pertisth Mankotia, IT Head of Sheela Foam, a company that manufactures slab polyurethane foam in the Asia-Pacific region.