Set Your Content Free, CMSExpo Keynote by Matt Asay

Matt Asay, VP of Business Development for Alfresco (news, site) opened the CMSExpo with the message that open source is now mainstream and being embraced by the enterprise.

It is the right message at the right time. Open source companies like Alfresco are thriving in an otherwise difficult time.

Proprietary vendors are trying to survive through acquisition resulting in less choice. They use closed standards making it difficult to get your content out of their systems. Set your content free by using open source software.

Here are just a few other tidbits that Asay had to say about open source:

• Alfresco is considered enterprise but Drupal and Joomla! are also being embraced by the enterprise
• Cost gets you in the door but surveys show that 87% of companies actually show cost savings after implementing open source
• Open source de-risks software acquisition -- you can try it for free before buying it
• Most software projects fail: If you buy open source and it fails, you have spent much less money in the process -- it is a subscription vs a large up-front charge
• Forrester survey: 100% will be using or plan to use open source by 2010, 56% will be using or plan to use a content management system
• Why use open source:  65% said it sparked innovation, 81% for better quality software, 67% lower cost

And what are the 2009 trends for Enterprise Content Management?

1. Governance, retention, compliance
2. Freedom of choice
3. Easier to use, customize and deploy (Drupal and Joomla! are leaders here)
4. More and better software for the price