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Will Sun's acquisition of MySQL darken LAMP?
Despite generally positive reviews from the open source community, that remains one concern as Sun moves ahead with its its $1 billion acquisition of MySQL.
As
part of the deal, Sun has made much of the fact that it is acquiring
the "M" part of the critical LAMP -- Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP --
Web stack. Many in the community have lauded Sun's move as validation
for the stack, which powers countless Web sites and Web applications.
Zend
is one of those optimistic about the move. The firm is the principal
backer of PHP -- the "P" portion of the stack -- and leads its efforts
in the commercial space.
Yet Zend also has worries about Sun's acquisition.
"What we
hope is that it doesn't start off an effort to redefine what the Web
stack is, to make it all-Java -- because Java is not the premier
solution in the Web space," Zend Chief Marketing Officer Mark de Visser
told
InternetNews.com.
De Visser said he believes one good sign is that Sun intends to make MySQL CEO Marten Mickos one of its executives. Mickos is expected to be reporting to Rich Green, Sun's executive vice president of software.
In
De Visser's view, Mickos's position within Sun would send a signal that
the company is serious about MySQL -- and isn't simply trying to adopt
it into its own technology stack.
"We
certainly hope that we can go forward on the same footing, as our
relationship with MySQL is very tight," De Visser said. "About 70
percent of our installed base runs MySQL, and vice versa. The
overlapping customer set is enormous."
That
concern aside, De Visser said he is sanguine about the deal, which he
described as indicating that the space is viable and has a strong
ecosystem.
Many other
commercial open source entities also rely on MySQL as part of their
businesses, and are also pleased with the purchase. Among them is open source customer relationship software vendor SugarCRM.
"Sun's acquisition of MySQL is another validation of the commercial open source model," SugarCRM CEO John Roberts told
InternetNews.com.
"Combining MySQL with Sun's open source portfolio and enterprise reach
will further accelerate the adoption of open source software while
hastening the decline of proprietary software sales."
The Sun
acquisition of MySQL is also viewed positively by members of MySQL own
existing partner ecosystem, including one of its largest partners --
Unisys.
"We are
excited to see the increased adoption of open source, particularly with
our partner MySQL," said Anthony Gold, vice president and general
manager for Unisys's open source business, in an e-mail to
InternetNews.com.
"Sun's acquisition of MySQL shows that enterprises are recognizing the
potential competitive advantages of open source solutions in their
mission-critical environments."
While many
cite LAMP and open source as the keys to MySQL's success, at least one
open source expert thinks there is far more to it.
"MySQL didn't succeed just because it was an open source business," Dominic Sartorio, president of the Open Solutions Alliance (OSA)
wrote in a blog post. "They succeeded because they mastered how to
deliver customer value, and brilliantly executed a strategy that is
tried-and-true in the software business: brand, platform, and meeting
customer needs."
"Open source was a means to an end, not an end unto itself," he wrote.
While
Zend's De Visser cautioned about the integrity of the LAMP stack
following the Sun acquisition, Sartorio argued that the time has come
for MySQL to move beyond LAMP.
"Now,
after dominating the LAMP-based market, I would suggest the next stage
of the MySQL business unit's growth would require thinking about
interoperability with other technology stacks," Sartorio wrote.
Author : Sean Michael Kerner
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Open Source Groups Upbeat, Cautious on Sun-MySQL
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