When Open Source started getting traction in the enterprise world, we saw business models emerge on top of the Open Source philosophical platform. One of the most successful business models is the so called Redhat model where the software is released under an Open Source license and monetization is done by offering support for a fee. This model worked reasonably well in the traditional software world and, in a way, broke the monopoly like status enjoyed by some companies.

When we moved over from the traditional software world to Cloud Computing, thought leaders and pundits were busy dismissing the idea of Open Source within the Cloud Computing paradigm. On one hand, Tim O’ Reilly has been arguing about the irrelevance of Open Source licenses in a SaaS based world and, instead, emphasizing on issues like federation, open architecture, data portability, etc.. On the other side, Richard Stallman is busy spreading FUD about Cloud Computing by claiming that it is an attempt by vendors to lock-in users into their service. I have been a strong advocate of the importance of Open Source in the Cloud based world. I have written about it in this space and also in other forums. In fact, the main aim of thisOpen Source and Cloud Computing Seriesis to highlight this importance.