Published at LXer:

The 451 Group believes that enterprise software vendors can no longer afford to ignore open source. In a special report, the IT industry analysts evaluate open source software as a powerful force of change with both upside and downside potential. As the lines between open and proprietary blur, licensing models will increasingly contain hybrid approaches to code ownership and permitted use. The end result: nearly every piece of enterprise software will eventually contain open source elements.<br><br> The analysts say that In the worst-case scenario, open source can do severe damage -- to licensing schemes and to legal definitions of intellectual property -- if used improperly. The potential benefits, however, are also massive -- making it important to clearly understand the critical path to finding upside in the commercial adoption of open source.

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