Microsoft is now a major sponsor of the Apache Software Foundation and is putting its protocols and formats into a royalty-free license, all part of a larger open-source push.PORTLAND,
Ore.—Once again, Microsoft has used the O'Reilly Open Source Convention
as a venue to make a key announcement about the company's involvement
with open-source initiatives.
In 2007, Microsoft announced that it had submitted a license to the
OSI (Open Source Initiative) for approval. This year Microsoft is
unveiling moves in three areas, including becoming a sponsor of the
Apache Software Foundation.
Sam Ramji, senior director of platform strategy at Microsoft, is
slated to keynote at the show July 25 and announce that Microsoft has
become a Platinum sponsor of the Apache Software Foundation. Ramji also
will talk about two other strategic moves for the company, which is
looking to cooperate more with the open-source community.
According to the foundation's Web site, there are four levels of
Apache sponsorship, with Platinum being the top level. That requires a
contribution of $100,000 a year. The other three levels are: Gold for
$40,000, Silver for $20,000, and Bronze for $5,000. Some may wonder
whether Microsoft is trying to buy its way into segments of the
open-source world.
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