Open Source & The Irish Software Industry?

The open source software movement is a global phenomenon that is having a significant impact on the global software industry. It is changing the way in which software companies and people view the software development process. It is changing the way in which software companies capture value. It is commoditizing segments of the software market and is creating new business models and new ways of capturing value. It is lauded by some and vilified by others. It is often painted in a biblical light ??? David taking on Goliath. Yet, many of the Goliaths??? are also benefiting from this movement. This dissertation explores this - How can companies manage the impacts of the open source software movement to their advantage? This research examines the phenomenon in the context of the Irish Industry. Through a review of the existing literature this dissertation develops and exploratory framework for investigating different factors that might be influential in looking at how Indigenous Irish Software firms might manage the impacts of open source software movement. It weaves facets of different research areas together to produce this framework. The framework is then tested using several techniques including a qualitative survey. The dissertation includes several sections that apply the framework in order to analyze and develop profiles of several different firms. These profiles are then used to look at some of the different strategies and tactics available to firms. In many cases, examples are drawn from the global software industry to illustrate these approaches. The research concludes that there are factors that influence how a firm can manage the impact of the open source movement. It also builds on the initial framework to offer a more complete approach to understanding the factors that change the way in which firms manage the impacts of the open source software movement.