Open source is coming centre stage. Many freeware are as capable and dynamic as the paid ones. There are several key sectors of economy where open source is being used.

Open source reduces costs. There are no vendor lock-ins. The code can be examined for privacy issues. Bugs can be detected. There is transparency and accountability. Co-win and Arogyasetu are built as open source digital platforms.

The open source developing community contribute valuable inputs. Most of India’s internet runs on FOSS or free open source software. The government encourages digital adoption through open source programmes.

Open source systems represent what internet truly meant to represent — democratisation of technology. Currently, we use Web 2, and with it the proprietary IP too flourished since the late 1990s. However, Web 3 promises decentralised networks and open source systems. There are open source substitutes for CRM, banking solutions, ERP and IoT.

There is misunderstanding that open source developers are not compensated for their contribution. That dilutes the quality of the work. This is not true. Open source developers are allocated finance while they contribute to open source projects. They in fact become the face of the system. The others become marketers.

There would be a cultural shift once open source takes centre stage. There would be decentralised networks and autonomous organisations operating over them. Web 3 will arrive.

There is a misconception that FOSS is less secure than proprietary software. There is lack of customisation too. People prefer to deal with known vendors, rather than disperse community of developers.