Open-Source and Proprietary Software: Why You Don’t Have to Choose

I often hear people say that they prefer or will “only use” either open-source or proprietary software, but they can’t always tell me why. It almost seems that people feel compelled to identify with one tribe or the other and then only consider the available options within that approach for solving their specific problems. I think it should be the other way around.

If you’re trying to figure out which approach to take for your company’s strategic software investment, I have some good news: You don’t have to pick a side! (And there’s a world of middle ground between the two approaches in their purest form.) In fact, most companies use a mix of open-source and proprietary technologies.

In this blog, I will add some nuance to the open source vs. proprietary debate and also distill the real benefits of each approach. Let’s start with open source.

Open Source: Democracy, Collaboration, and Efficiency

From a software development perspective, the term “open source” is synonymous with access and freedom. No other industry has managed to democratize itself as much as software development — to the extent that now, individuals virtually anywhere in the world can develop open-source coding skills and participate in the tech economy. With minimal investment and network access, anyone can develop skills to solve problems with open-source software, become a creator, and even collaborate with other developers around the world.

Collaboration is inherent to the nature of open-source software. Licensing agreements typically require developers to publicly share their work as they complete it, and there are tremendous benefits to this approach. For one, any particular technology can quickly spread and mature into being useful across myriad use cases and industries. Also, the technology matures quickly as thousands of developers use it. Bugs and glitches can be spotted and addressed by each new generation of coders.

As more people improve upon the work of others, the products become smarter and more productive — a huge advantage for end-users who need their technology solutions to be both proven and forward-leaning. Open source essentially crowdsources quality control and innovation on an infinite timeline.

The accessible nature of open-source software offers yet another benefit to end-users — there’s almost never a need to start from scratch. Instead, developers typically start where another open-source project left off, building on the success of others who completed similar undertakings before them (and saving end-users money).

Open source is not mere crowdsourcing. It is crowd-innovating. That’s what makes it a pillar of the tech industry.

Proprietary Software: Better Than It Used to Be

Exclusive, proprietary software systems (think Microsoft or Intuit) offer some distinct advantages and are worthy of consideration. For one, depending on your situation and use case, there may be readily available technologies that are proven, affordable, and can be implemented almost immediately. That level of utility and immediacy can be critical for a growing business. With less than a day’s work, the right proprietary technology can solve a problem for a couple of years. That’s worth a lot.

It is true that exclusive software decays at a faster rate than open-source systems, and there have been long-standing problems with obsolescence and stagnation with some of these products. Historically, the companies developing proprietary software had little incentive to focus on innovation. Once the product worked and customers bought it, particularly in the early years of software development, there would be no competition and no reason to invest in R&D or any actual innovation. Over time, many of these platforms lost their agility and value proposition, especially as open-source technologies began to proliferate.

Fast forward 10 to 15 years, and there are now open-source alternatives to most any proprietary software product on the market. These new, innovation-driven technologies have applied pressure to companies making proprietary software in the form of competition, and proprietary technologies are improving because of it.

In some ways, open-source dragged proprietary software companies kicking and screaming into a better market position selling better products — which is good for them and also good for businesses who need to solve IT problems quickly.

The bottom line is that many proprietary software companies are more innovation-focused than they used to be, and the quality of their solutions reflects it. If you don’t have time or funding for a custom, open-source development project, find an IT partner who can help you consider some proprietary solutions that could make an immediate impact.

Most Businesses Need Both

If you’re trying to make a decision about whether to go open-source or proprietary, I invite you to consider your options through a more practical lens. While it’s an important decision, it doesn’t need to be defining in terms of which route you take, now or in the future. What are your most profound needs, and what products would address them most efficiently?

There are often effective options that are readily available and far less disruptive than you might expect. Reach out to me through LinkedIn if you like to talk through your business’s IT needs. I'm offering a free 15-minute consultation for new clients, and I would love to learn about your technology needs and discuss some options.