Few days ago the Italian MEP Marco Cappato made public a EC report
analyzing the feasibility of a migration to open source software on desktop workplaces.
The study was conducted in 2005, and contains two deck of slides from Gartner’s analysts Michael Silver and Nikos Drakos. Both presentations are worth reading, even if some guesses are not supported by facts.
Michael Silver’s presentation (section 4.2, page 37) totally missed the point about what really are impedements to OSS office products. He didn’t mention EAI nor custom applications, focusing on Microsoft Access replacement and fidelity (actually two minor problems in the OpenOffice.migration).
Talking about innovation, Silver says:
As long as they [OpenOffice.org/StarOffice] concentrate on compatibility, can they introduce significant innovation and discontinuity.
I couldn’t disagree more. Low end disruption - as described by Clayton Christensen in his book “The Innovator’s dilemma” - happens when technology advances faster than customers’ needs. I am not original in saying that, referring to Microsoft Office’s over delivery.
Gartner pays more attention to open source now, though.
Andrea Di Maio, vice president and distinguished analyst in Gartner Research, in his The Growing Appetite for Open Source in Government states that open source enables a way to procure software and IT services that is different. Faster.
Thanks for pointing to my blog post. For your information Gartner presented open source as a disruptive innovation back in 2003-2004. And we’ve paid attention to open source for a long time. Jst, we’ve tried to keep a balanced view amidst strong opposition and religious fervor.
Hi Andrea,
I am glad you are joining the conversation. I pointed to your blog post because I think that the “easiness” of open source procurement is too often under considered.
About disruptive innovation what I said that Silver’s presentation missed to look at OOo from that perspective, it wasn’t a general assumption about Gartner’s vision on disruptive innovation.