Adempiere as a New Business Model Idea
Contents
Introduction
During the development of the OI's idea, there has been several discussing and talk both in forums and IRC. One of this talks with Mike comes out with an idea to better protect Adempiere community Ip that was fully detail in the wiki the same day. With this i had the feeling that there is a lot of potential and ideas hidden in the community if we all have some basic concepts clear.
So i come up today with this idea in order to clarify the Adempiere Business Model, as a community that is build around a GPL business software with the objectives to benefit his users,developers,integrators,etc... His community.
ADempiere, as a business or platform, fits within a larger eco-system (eco as in economic). The software and brand is supported by companies and individuals that supply or act as developers and contributors (the Official Implementors). It is enhanced and sold by value added resellers and used by end-users/customers. Value which can be money, people time or information, is created by and flows between these entities. Of these the OIs are critically important to the long term success of the eco-system.
- Idea on working, any suggestion or contribution is welcome.
Objetives
- Clarify potential OI's the benefit to join Adempiere community
- Encourage Adempiere community to adopt a new Business Model
- Encourage members of Adempiere community push and support the project.
- Differentiate Adempiere from other ERP.
- Build the bases for a Global unified structure.
Idea Mindmap
GPL license, Internet, Globalization are changing the software industry by providing all the tools needed to base future projects on a new business model, where the center of the structure is not the shareholder, but the community.
This new business model allow communities as Adempiere to provide enterprise class products globally without the need of fat budgets and structures, as long as they are able to create a wide and stable partnership base.
But there are several things the community can't ignore as:
- Legal,IP,etc... structure
- Stable and clear decision making structure
- Competitive and clear benefit structure for his partners
- Single Brand promotion
- Keep software competitive
- Encourage the cooperation with universities, governments,etc...
By adopting several ideas proposed as OI's and IP Foundation project, the community can address some of this things to make it competitive in the ERP world, keeping a stable growth in order to become a De facto standard in the future as no other Business Model can compete in the future with the one proposed.
Case 4: Adempiere International Inc. Not-for-profit structure
A not-for-profit structure may be an excellent fit for the centralized business supporting the ADempiere open-source project. Not-for-profit means that there can be no pecuniary gain from involvement in the orgainzation - on one can profit. There are no shareholders and no ownership. It is formed by a group of people to serve a purpose which could be to hold and protect the community IP, promote the community and the software. Membership in and governance of the corporation is defined in a charter. The organization is incorporated, can hold assets and operate like any other business as long as it behaves in accordance with its charter.
As well as holding IP, the corporation could be the granting body for certification, the main contact for sales leads distributed to the OIs, and the main marketing tool to the wider eco-system as well as the other items mentioned in Case 3 above.
