[for immediate release]
Welcome to life after ICT lock-in
Certified Open trial period launched
Today sees the launch of the trial period for Certified Open, a programme to evaluate the technical and commercial lock-in of ICT solutions. Certified Open promotes fair and effective competition in the delivery of software, hardware and services.
Certified Open is a joint venture between OpenForum Europe (OFE) and Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE). The programme originated in UK local government and European Commission eTen projects and was further developed with industry, community and user engagement.
The certification process is simple and fast. It is based on self-assessment and uses an on-line application process. The programme tests technical and commercial aspects of interoperability and awards Gold, Silver or Bronze certificates to successful applicants. Accreditations and answers to certification questions are listed on-line for public review to ensure fairness. There is a neutral appeal process to resolve irregularities and a governance council to oversee development and forward planning.
Graham Taylor, Director of OpenForum Europe said: "Certified Open represents a complete solution for public and private sector users to check the openness of their ICT solutions. We frequently see examples where organisations have become locked-in to a system due to the costs involved in change. Analysis carried out by OFE has indicated that 90% of public sector organisations no longer have the freedom to choose ICT solutions on the basis of competitiveness, functionality or price because of lock-in."
Certified Open is designed to ensure freedom from lock-in and openness to fair competition. The framework assesses dependence on proprietary or undocumented protocols, dependence on undocumented or proprietary data formats, licensing terms that preclude the use of alternative products, extensions to standards to ensure good performance and the use of pseudo-standards dependent on patents or other restrictions that prevent compatible competing implementations."
Georg Greve, President of the Free Software Foundation Europe stated: "Vendor lock-in has become the primary problem for IT decisions in general and Free Software adoption in particular. It distorts the market and denies Free Software solutions equal competition on the merits. The problem has been that many lock-ins are invisible, for example reliance on proprietary protocols or needing to use certain document formats. Certified Open makes that lock-in visible and allows users to measure their dependency. Suppliers can highlight clearly when their products are interoperable, and we hope that Certified Open will provide an incentive to ensure that they are. Our goal is to give back freedom of choice to all users."
NOTES FOR EDITORS
For more information please contact Graham Taylor on + 44 771 359 3217 or Jennifer Webber + 44 7908 643 983.
1. Graham Taylor is speaking at the Open Source Summit, hosted by Olswang and Greenberg Traurig and held at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre today at 1630. Graham will be available for comment via Jennifer Webber on +44 7908 643 093.
2. Certified Open is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee in the UK. There is no equity or profit to distribute and any surpluses generated will be returned to the development of Certified Open. It is intended that this is the first step towards the establishment of a Foundation. The Board of Certified Open Limited currently consists of four directors, two from each of the founding organisations - OpenForum Europe and Free Software Foundation Europe. Certified Open was originally developed with support of the UK Government's eInnovations programme, and the eTEN programme of the European Commission. It has already been extensively trialled with support from the community, industry and user organisations.
3. The Certified Open programme has a 3 Month Trial period running until end January 2008. During this period all accreditations will be free of charge and submissions will remain confidential. The trial can be accessed at www.certifiedopen.com.
4. OpenForum Europe is a not-for-profit, independent organisation launched in March 2002 to accelerate, broaden and strengthen the use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in business and government. OFE pursues the vision of an open, competitive European IT market by 2010 in line with the European Commission i2010 Strategy, with the mission of facilitating open competitive choice for IT users
5. Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) is a non-profit non-governmental organisation active in many European countries and involved in global activities. FSFE is dedicated to Free Software, software that can be used, studied, shared and improved by its users. FSFE was founded in 2001 to create awareness for Free Software, secure Free Software politically and legally, and give people Freedom by supporting development of Free Software. FSFE wishes to secure equal participation in the information age and freedom of competition.
Contact: Joachim Jakobs, Media Relations Email: jakobs@fsfeurope.org Tel: +49 700 373387673 Ext: 404 Mobile: +49 179 6919565