[Openmind 2012] Free Software in the public sector: Getting it right & getting value by Karsten Gerloff (President, FSFE)

Transcript

1. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Karsten

   Gerloff Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) <[email protected]> http://fsfe.org Free Software in the public sector: Getting it right & getting value

2. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Library

   of France awards open source maintenance contract

3. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Germany's

   public authorities moving to open source mail and groupware

4. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Belgian

   government makes available source code of voting machines

5. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Brazil's

   Parliament studying reuse of Estonian e-government solutions

6. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by White

   House makes public software to create and sign petitions

7. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Law

   makes open source the default for Italian public administrations

8. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Good

   reasons for Free Software • Use, study, share, improve • Vendor independence • Open Standards • Adaptability • Reuse • Access for citizens • Cost savings

9. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Success

   factors for migrations Hard factors • Proper planning & execution • Training for IT staff & users • Communication & buy-in

10. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Success

    factors for migrations Soft factors • Strategic thinking • Motivation • Political backing

11. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by The

    next frontier: procurement

12. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Problem:

    brand names Art. 23(8) of Directive 2004/18/EC: “technical specifications shall not refer to a specific make or source, [...] with the effect of favouring or eliminating certain undertakings or certain products”.

13. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Reality

    Almost one in five software tenders on TED mentions a trademark

14. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by FSFE

    pilot project in Finland • Regularly review public calls for tender • If brand name mentioned, inform the authority running the tender • If no fix possible, FSFE may push to have call invalidated

15. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Favouritism

    Procurement process tailored to favour particular suppliers

16. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Favouritism

    Procurement process tailored to favour particular suppliers: • European Commission hasn't run a public call for tender for office suites & desktop operating systems for 20 years

17. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Old

    habits die hard • Public bodies sometimes prefer to work with established partners • Lots too big for SMEs

18. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Doing

    it right • Functionalities & standards, not brand names • Include exit costs. Break dependency on proprietary formats & macros • Buy Open Standards • Get the rights to use, study, share and improve the software

19. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Easy

    action items • Establish Free Software working groups in existing public sector associations • Train procurement people, reduce reliance on vendors' sales pitch • Create best practice awards – e.g. Best call for tender

20. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Doing

    it better • Framework contracts for Free Software (Kammarkollegiet, Sweden) • Release software developed with public funds (Basque Country, Spain) • Make Free Software the default choice (Italy)

21. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Conclusions

    • No longer “why Free Software?”, but “why not?” • Procurement is broken. We need to fix it. • Government & public bodies can do much, much more to take advantage of Free Software.

22. OpenMind & OKFestival, Helsinki, 18.9.2012 © 2012 FSFE cc-by Thank

    you! Karsten Gerloff Free Software Foundation Europe <[email protected]>