Making money from freely available software.
WHAT MODELS EXIST
Support and maintenance contracts Hosted or managed services Additional proprietary features Certification and training Consulting and implementation Dual licensing
WHY THE SOFTWARE ITSELF IS NOT THE PRODUCT
It is freely available, and the value is in what surrounds it.
WHAT SUPPORT MODELS SELL
Response, accountability and expertise.
WHO BUYS
Organisations that cannot rely on community support.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What is included and what response is committed.
WHAT HOSTED SERVICES SELL
Removal of operational burden.
WHY IT WORKS
Most organisations would rather not run infrastructure.
WHAT TO CONSIDER
Whether the licence permits what you intend.
WHY
Some licences constrain providing the software as a service.
WHAT ADDITIONAL FEATURE MODELS REQUIRE
A clear boundary between what is open and what is not.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What determines which side something falls on.
WHY
An unclear boundary produces community resentment and commercial confusion.
WHAT TO AVOID
Moving existing open capability behind payment Restricting the open version to force purchase
WHY
It damages trust irreversibly and it is remembered.
WHAT DUAL LICENSING MEANS
Offering the same software under an open licence and a commercial one.
WHAT IT REQUIRES
Owning all the rights.
WHY
You cannot relicense contributions you do not own.
WHAT THAT REQUIRES
Contributor agreements assigning or licensing rights.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH BEFORE ACCEPTING CONTRIBUTIONS
Whether your model requires them.
