| Europe tops global open source survey |
Apr. 23, 2009
 Red Hat and Georgia Tech have published a study that measures open source activity around the world. The Open Source Index (OSI) is accompanied by an interactive map (pictured) that shows the relative rankings for 75 countries based on their open source software (OSS) activity.
The OSI ranks the nations on two maps, with two sets of criteria. Activity (pictured above and below), looks at concrete measures of current activity, while the Environment map is more speculative, and aims to show where OSS is likely to grow most quickly in the future. In each case a final score is given that combines the community, government, and industry factors.
When the current "Activity" scores are combined, France is the leading open source stalwart, followed by Spain, Germany, Australia, Finland, and the UK. In the Western Hemisphere, the U.S. leads with a #9 ranking, while Brazil is right behind at #12, and Canada trails at #28. In Asia, the leader is Japan (#14), followed by China (#15), South Korea (#20), and India (#23).
Open Source Activity Map (Source: Red Hat, Georgia Tech, and Europa Technologies)
(Click to enlarge)
The more speculative Environment map, which reflects factors including total number of Internet users and information technology patents, predicts which nations will offer the most favorable environments for open source growth. The map is similar, but shows some interesting trends, with Sweden jumping out to a #1 ranking, followed by the U.S. (moving up from #9 in the activity map) and Norway. Interestingly, both China and India fade considerably in these future-looking rankings.
The survey shows that open source is widely disseminated, but also appears to indicate a general correlation between open source usage and the more affluent, technologically advanced nations. In short, it appears there is more than price sensitivity driving the interest in open source.
Availability
For more maps, trends, and analysis of the Red Hat study, see our coverage on LinuxDevices, here.
-- Eric Brown
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