Independently if a government uses proprietary software or open source software in its computers, there is something that is fundamental: Are the citizens getting the most of their government’s systems? Usually, the answer is not. It is not surprising to visit our favorite government’s website and find dead links and out of date information. The edition of The Economist of February 16th made a good case out of this in an special report.
In one of the articles of the report they argued (quoting from George Markellos) that governments should provide their services with the same features of the private sector: personalized service, around the clock, and easy as can possible be. In other article they added a fourth feature: it should keep open the door for people to keep doing the same businesses in the old fashion (Internet should not be a barrier keeping people from interacting with the government).
It is clear that in the long term, OSS will save to the government a lot of money that otherwise would be spent in licenses. Also, that OSS allows users to twist the systems without any reservation. Therefore, governments that switch to OSS can invest the money they saved in crafting the systems their citizens deserve. This strategy will also boost the need for professionals in the government sector (it will be a good idea to use high quality marketing and consulting services in public solutions).
