Opinion on Brazil making Open Source mandatory in government

Opinion on Brazil making Open Source mandatory in government

Posted Jun 14, 2003 9:40 UTC (Sat) by copsewood (subscriber, #199)
Parent article: Opinion on Brazil making Open Source mandatory in government

Tony's concerns presume a level playing field which does not exist. It is the job of government to create a level playing field. The fact that the Brazilian government has set a target of 80% free software (a market which allows for a level playing field between suppliers) over a period of a few years simply indicates to me that this government is doing the job which it is elected and empowered to do, unlike most other governments who have not yet fully appreciated the monopolistic implications of having a closed-source software supplier with an entrenched market position.

This decision only exludes proprietary suppliers who choose not to compete within the terms of supply which a large purchaser can reasonably choose to apply to those tendering for large public purchases. If Microsoft chooses through its business policies to exclude itself from this market that is Microsoft's decision and problem.

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