The Linux Foundation has released a report estimating the value of code from its Collaborative Projects at $5 billion. The study, published on September 30, 2015, aims to quantify the economic worth of open source software development. It highlights the challenges in pricing freely available code while providing a financial perspective on collaborative efforts.
The Linux Foundation's new report seeks to address the elusive question of open source software's monetary value. Released on September 30, 2015, the study focuses on the development costs of code in its Collaborative Projects, estimating a total worth of $5 billion.
Quantifying open source is challenging because much of it is free, shared across projects, and developed by a mix of paid and volunteer contributors. To tackle this, the report primarily uses the SLOCCount Model, developed by David A. Wheeler in 2002. This model assesses the financial value based on the total lines of code in a project. It also incorporates estimates of person-hours required and overall development costs.
The Collaborative Projects are not owned by the Linux Foundation but are independently funded initiatives that the organization helps coordinate. These involve more than 500 companies and thousands of developers driving the work.
Amanda McPherson, vice president of Developer Programs and CMO at the Linux Foundation, and co-author of the report, emphasized its significance. "Over the last few years every major technology category has been taken over by open source and so much opinion has been shared about the proliferation of open source projects, but not about the value," she said. She added, "As the model for building the world's most important technologies have evolved from the past's build vs. buy dichotomy, it is important to understand the economic value of this development model. We hope our new paper can help contribute to that understanding."
The report is freely available on the Linux Foundation's website, offering insights into the economic impact of open source collaboration.