Open Source Observatory (OSOR)

Open data, source, APIs

18/01/2019

Over a hundred European cities have agreed on ‘Minimal Interoperability Mechanisms’ defining the communication between software programmes and building blocks to allow co-creation and sharing of…

Share, adapt and reuse

17/01/2019

It’s getting easier for France’s local and regional public services to manage their procurement entirely electronically, thanks to open source software. Adullact, a membership association that helps…

Fund a mitigation approach

08/01/2019

EU Member States should agree on how to disclose software bugs and vulnerabilities in computer hardware, and the best ways to mitigate their risks, a study commissioned by the European Union Agency…

Inclusion and sharing

08/01/2019

Because it makes it easier to work together, and because it encourages the sharing, reuse, and improvement of ICT solutions, free and open source is a strategic choice for Enabel, the Belgian…

Touts GDPR-compliance

19/12/2018

Public administrations across Greece are welcome to reuse the identity-management software solution built by the city of Heraklion. In 2017 the city began combining OpenLDAP for directory services and…

Alongside open data

17/12/2018

“Open source software will be promoted, especially by using it in public administrations.” For the first time, a Luxembourg government has included open source in its coalition agreement. The new…

Aiding cooperation

16/12/2018

The Swiss canton of Bern has begun sharing software developed by and for the canton as open source. Earlier this year the canton adapted its ICT regulations to allow code sharing, and last week Bern…

Struggling with lock-in

14/12/2018

In the Slovak Republic, public services turn to open source software only because of highly-motivated innovation champions in their organisation. Outside of these, open source is not commonly…

Les Blue Hats

14/12/2018

The French government is building its own open source developer community, aiming to bring together software developers and IT scientists who want to contribute to government-led open source projects.…

Confronting IT lock-in

07/12/2018

A law being prepared by the Czech Republic on eGovernment services (‘Právo na Digitální Služby’ or ‘Right to Digital Service’) will establish technological neutrality for companies and citizens. This…

More revenue, new jobs

06/12/2018

In the past year, ICT companies in the Basque Country in Spain that specialise in free and open source software report a revenue growth of 8 percent – much higher than the autonomous region’s average…