Impacts of license choice and organizational sponsorship on user interest and development activity in open source software projects

被引：163

作者：

Stewart, Katherine J. ^{[1
]}

Ammeter, Anthony P.

Maruping, Likoebe M.

机构：

[1] Univ Maryland, Dept Decis & Informat Technol, RH Smith Sch Buiness, College Pk, MD 20782 USA

[2] Univ Mississippi, Management Informat Syst & Product & Operat Manag, Sch Business Adm, University, MS 38677 USA

[3] Univ Arkansas, Walton Coll Business, Dept Informat Syst, Fayetteville, AR 72701 USA

来源：

INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH | 2006年 / 17卷 / 02期

关键词：

open source; software development; software licensing; success;

D O I：

10.1287/isre.1060.0082

中图分类号：

G25 [图书馆学、图书馆事业]; G35 [情报学、情报工作];

学科分类号：

1205 ; 120501 ;

摘要：

What differentiates successful from unsuccessful open source software projects? This paper develops and tests a model of the impacts of license restrictiveness and organizational sponsorship on two indicators of success: user interest in, and development activity on, open source software development projects. Using data gathered from Freshmeat.net and project home pages, the main conclusions derived from the analysis are that (1) license restrictiveness and organizational sponsorship interact to influence user perceptions of the likely utility of open source software in such a way that users are most attracted to projects that are sponsored by nonmarket organizations and that employ nonrestrictive licenses, and (2) licensing and sponsorship address complementary developer motivations such that the influence of licensing on development activity depends on what kind of organizational sponsor a project has. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed, and the paper outlines several avenues for future research.

引用

页码：126 / 144

页数：19

共 56 条

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