Sun Microsystems may offer versions of its application
server and Web server under an open source licence, said Jonathan
Schwartz, executive vice president for software.
The move could help proliferate the use of Sun's Java server
software by making it more attractive to developers, some of whom
like the freedom to view and modify software code that an open
source licence provides. Sun is not disclosing a timetable for its
plan, but it is exploring what type of open source licence would be
the most suitable to offer, Schwartz said.
He positioned the move as an outgrowth of Sun's efforts to
promote its Java Desktop System in China. The desktop system is a
package of open source software products including Linux and Sun's
StarOffice productivity suite that Sun is pushing as a low-cost
alternative to Microsoft Corp.'s desktop software.
Earlier this week Sun announced a deal to provide China Standard
Software Co. (CSSC), a consortium of technology companies that
handles work for the government in China, with as many as one
million seats per year of its Java Desktop System. CSSC will
package and distribute the software for the Chinese government.
The China deal is important, according to Schwartz, because it
will help to establish widespread use of technologies such as Java,
as well as the file formats in StarOffice. That will make the
marketplace for desktop software more competitive by loosening
Microsoft's grip, he argued.
Sun sees related potential benefits from offering an open source
version of its server software, Schwartz said.
"This deal (in China) has far-reaching impacts, not simply in
the marketplace but also inside Sun with respect to our
relationship with the open source community and how we might
potentially modify our business going forward," Schwartz said.
"It may have an impact on how we relate to the open source
community with our server products. With the release of J2EE (Java
2 Enterprise Edition) 1.4, we've made a basic version of our
application server available free of charge. We're looking now at
how we might make that open source," he said. Schwartz also that
Sun's Web server is also part of the plan.
"Open source doesn't have to mean free," Schwartz said,
explaining how the move might benefit Sun. Making the products open
source should get them into the hands of more corporate developers,
and companies may end up paying for services or higher end versions
of its application server, he said.
Sun may also have its eye on nascent Asian markets where
governments have been showing increased interest in open source
software. In September, Japan, China and South Korea said they
would work to develop open source products for use in their
countries, most likely based on existing open source software such
as Linux.
A few open source Java application servers already exist, from
JBoss Group LLC and from the ObjectWeb Consortium, which develops
JOnAS (Java Open Application Server).
Getting Sun's Java software in the hands of customers for free
is better than not having them use it at all, Schwartz said. With
that in mind, he said Sun is also pondering a free version of its
Java Desktop System for students and educators.
One concern about offering an open-source application server is
that it could result in the development of incompatible versions of
the product, Schwartz said. Sun is particularly concerned that
Microsoft could distribute a modified version of the product in
order to disrupt the Java market, as it was accused of doing with
Sun's Java software a few years ago. "This is the singular greatest
concern," he said.
Sun is exploring alternatives to the widely used open-source GPL
(General Public Licence) that might guard against such
incompatibilities, he said. The company is interested in the BSD
licence, he said.
Software has become a more important part of Sun's overall
strategy in the past two years. With sales of its higher-end Unix
servers in a slump, the company has been emphasising the value of
its Java software stack, which includes an application server,
directory server, portal server and other products.
It competes with similar stacks from IBM, BEA Systems and other
Java vendors, as well as with Microsoft's .Net server software.
Despite the widespread use of Java, Sun's share of the application
server market remains relatively low, and some analysts have
criticised the company for not having profited more from Java's
widespread use.
James Niccolai writes for IDG News
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