May 04, 2005

Why For-Profits Supply Open Source

Intrinsic vs. extrinsic incentives in profit-oriented firms supplying Open Source products and services, by Cristina Rossi and Andrea Bonaccorsi, First Monday, volume 10, number 5 (May 2005), URL: http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue10_5/rossi/index.html

Abstract:

This paper contributes to the literature on Open Source (OS) software by providing empirical evidence on the incentives of firms that engage in OS activities. Data collected by a survey conducted on 146 Italian companies supplying OS solutions (Open Source firms) show that (surprisingly) intrinsic, community-based incentives do play a role but are not, in general, put into practise. We investigate the discrepancy between attitudes and behaviours and single out groups of firms adopting a more consistent behaviour. Our results are in line with the literature on business models of the firms that enter the Open Source field.

DougSimpson.com/blog

Posted by dougsimpson at May 4, 2005 09:41 AM