Repeatedly we speak about the merits of the open source paradigm – putting control of the product into the hands of the people . This can either be a case of handing over control from the vendor to the customer or – more aptly in the context of open source journalism — from the author/journalist to the reader/critic.

Earlier this month, results from a highly-anticipated study on software were finally published. The study was backed by the European Commission and it was authority- and vendor-independent. The results indicated that Europe would get a competitive advantage owing to the economical superiority of open source software. This study, which involved rigorous trials and long-term observations, shows that in “almost all cases,” IT businesses would save money by switching to open source software.

The question is what lessons this will provide as we study how open source practices move beyond software into fields such as design, authoring and journalism.

If the conclusions from this recent study of open source software hold true, open source journalism could prove to be economically viable — in part from greater flexibility, an increase in production pace and improving quality. All the reasons that open source software are a savings in the long run, according the EC study.

From the study, recommendations include:

“Avoid lifelong vendor lock-in educational systems by teaching students skills, not specific applications; encourage participation in FLOSS-like communities.”

“Encourage partnerships between large firms, SMEs and the FLOSS community.”

“Provide equitable tax treatment for FLOSS creators: FLOSS software contributions can be treated as charitable donations for tax purposes.

Where this is already possible, spread awareness among firms, contributors and authorities.”

There is still great resistance among the traditional software world, which attempts to discredit the emerging economics of open source. Take Microsoft’s “Get The Facts” campaign. But facts on the ground continue to lean in a different direction.

The EC study, which was produced by the United Nations University in Maastricht, Netherlands, has less incentive in producing a biased opinion on open source than Microsoft does.

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Roy Schestowitz is a Ph.D. Candidate in Medical Biophysics at Manchester University. He advocates the use of open source technology in the public and private sector and uses his background in computing to make personal contributions to the Free Software movement.