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Features
The Inevitable Unbundling of Software and Support
2/27/2004
Recent months reflect an important discussion of open source application software
for higher education. The success of Linux and Apache at the infrastructure
level and the generally collaborative nature of universities prompted Gartner
to forecast that higher education would be one of the early places for open
source applications, such as course management systems, portals, and ePortfolios.
The classic “Build vs. Buy” decision has now been augmented with
open source’s “Borrow” option—borrowing without an expectation
of repayment. Some argue that the lack of commercial support is open source’s
Achilles heel. Conversely, I assert that the emerging unbundled support model
for open source applications is actually a feature, rather than a bug for higher
education’s future.
Unbundling is inevitable. Traditional models for software have offered a for-fee license to use proprietary intellectual property (IP) bundled with for-fee support provided by the owner of the IP. Unbundling creates two distinct markets for software and support. Thus, the following points merit timely scrutiny:
n Unbundling is a general economic trend that offers greater efficiency.
n Recent open source collaborations have triggered unbundling for higher education.
n Markets segments will choose.
Economic Trends Favor Unbundling
Unbundling is a general, evolutionary economic trend favoring greater marketplace choice and efficiency. Wecan observe this trend all around us. Few of us buy auto insurance from our car’s manufacturer or telephone repairs from the phone company. We plan our travel with à la carte choices for rental cars, hotels, and airfare. We buy our mobile, local, and long-distance phone service from different providers.
Unbundling d'es not negate the possibility of offering bundles—note the travel industry’s recent attempts to rebundle complete trips or the telecom provider’s efforts to package all of your phone services—but the options for unbundled choices remain plentiful because they are economically efficient.
It is tempting to dismiss these arguments by asserting that complexity in large application software systems necessitates support from its creator. It is indeed difficult to support a black box without knowledge of its inner workings—which is today’s current situation with proprietary software.
Open source, however, changes the situation considerably. The inner workings of the software are visible—and changeable—by anyone who chooses to understand them. For-profit companies can build competencies in understanding, supporting, and extending open source software to offer for-fee services without holding proprietary license over the IP itself.
Open Source
Accelerates Unbundling
But will this unbundling work? Do these “IP-less” companies really
exist? The success of uPortal with well over 170 adoptions and multiple Open
Source Support Providers (OSSPs) demonstrates that unbundling works. The
r-smart group’s support for the Open Source Portfolio Initiative’s
Release 1 is another example. No less than a dozen well-funded open source application
projects in the past year ensure a healthy stream of open source products for
higher education.
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