NXT Up: OSBC

by jcannon on March 12, 2008 03:43pm

At last years, OSBC, Microsoft hosted its first annual Open Source ISV Forum. In large part, the event was focused on facilitating  a discussion around enabling open source innovation on Microsoft technologies, and to help potential partners reach new customers with those innovations.

For frequent readers of Port 25, it shouldn’t be a surprise to hear that Microsoft is building bridges with open source partners. Over the years, Microsoft has helped thousands of partners grow successful businesses by providing a strong platform – both technically and operationally – to build on. This model has been successful for one reason: choice. Choice in applications, choice in licensing and support models, and choices in how customers deploy the solutions they’ve chosen.  It is simply good business sense to extend this tradition to open source communities as well - and we’re committed to doing so.

That’s why we’re excited, in just under two weeks, to hold the second annual Microsoft Open Source ISV Forum on Monday, March 24th. Similar to last year, we’re holding it in conjunction with OSBC to ensure we’re reaching out to the right folks at the right time, and participating in the larger dialogue that OSBC provides of putting open source to work. Sam Ramji will be kicking the day off with a session entitled, "Open Source, Interoperability, and Microsoft: What it all means." That'll be followed with sessions on venture capital funding, partnering, sales and marketing assistance- and a professional networking reception afterwards.

I encourage you or your company, if you are attending OSBC, or live in the San Francisco area, to register and attend. It’s free for the day, and will promise to be a valuable, open and insightful dialogue on the choices, and challenges, of going-to-market with open source.