A longitudinal case study of an emerging software ecosystem: Implications for practice and theory

Hanssen, Geir Kjetil

doi:10.1016/j.jss.2011.04.020

Cited by 96 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…We take the view of ecosystems being extensions of product lines of substantial size [4,12,18,19]. We consider the following two characteristics of an ecosystem, as defined by Hanssen [20], as central to our study: (i) a network of organizations, and (ii) a common interest in central software technology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variability mechanisms in software ecosystems

Berger

Pfeiffer

Tartler

et al. 2014

Information and Software Technology

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Context: Software ecosystems are increasingly popular for their economic, strategic, and technical advantages. Application platforms such as Android or iOS allow users to highly customize a system by selecting desired functionality from a large variety of assets. This customization is achieved using variability mechanisms. Objective: Variability mechanisms are well-researched in the context of software product lines. Although software ecosystems are often seen as conceptual successors, the technology that sustains their success and growth is much less understood. Our objective is to improve the empirical understanding of variability mechanisms used in successful software ecosystems. Method: We analyze five ecosystems, ranging from the Linux kernel through Eclipse to Android. A qualitative analysis identifies and characterizes variability mechanisms together with their organizational context. This analysis leads to a conceptual framework that unifies ecosystem-specific aspects using a common terminology. A quantitative analysis investigates scales, growth rates, and-most importantly-dependency structures of the ecosystems. Results: In all the studied ecosystems, we identify rich dependency languages and variability descriptions that declare many direct and indirect dependencies. Indirect dependencies to abstract capabilities, as opposed to concrete variability units, are used predominantly in fast-growing ecosystems. We also find that variability models-while providing systemwide abstractions over code-work best in centralized variability management and are, thus, absent in ecosystems with large free markets. These latter ecosystems tend to emphasize maintaining capabilities and common vocabularies, dynamic discovery, and binding with strong encapsulation of contributions, together with uniform distribution channels. Conclusion:The use of specialized mechanisms in software ecosystems with large free markets, as opposed to software product lines, calls for recognition of a new discipline-variability encouragement.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Variability mechanisms in software ecosystems

Berger

Pfeiffer

Tartler

et al. 2014

Information and Software Technology

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“…Another possible interpretation could be that niche players have knowledge about both the domain and the platform and thus do not need co-development. This contradicts with the viewpoint of Hanssen [31]. Finally, the need for obtaining synergies that can drive innovation, reduce costs and development time [32] may not be that strong in our context.…”

Section: Co-development [No]mentioning

confidence: 80%

Evaluating the Governance Model of Hardware-Dependent Software Ecosystems – A Case Study of the Axis Ecosystem

Wnuk

Manikas

Runeson

et al. 2014

Software Business. Towards Continuous Value Delivery

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Ecosystem governance becomes gradually more relevant for a set of companies or actors characterized by symbiotic relations evolved on the top of a technological platform, i.e. a software ecosystem. In this study, we focus on the governance of a hardware-dependent software ecosystem. More specifically, we evaluate the governance model applied by Axis, a network video and surveillance camera producer, that is the platform owner and orchestrator of the Application Development Partner (ADP) software ecosystem. We conduct an exploratory case study collecting data from observations and interviews and apply the governance model for prevention and improvement of the software ecosystem health proposed by Jansen and Cusumano. Our results reveal that although the governance actions do not address the majority of their governance model, the ADP ecosystem is considered a growing ecosystem providing opportunities for its actors. This can be explained by the fact that Axis, as the orchestrator and the platform owner, does not address the productivity and robustness of the ecosystem adequately, but has a network of vendors and resellers to support it and some of the governance activities (e.g. communication) are achieved by non-formal means. The current governance model does not take into consideration.

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“…Further, the SE is theorized as a way to construct large software system on top of a software platform by composing components developed by actors both internal and external to the network (Manikas & Hansen, 2013). Hence, the SE is a networked community of organizations, which bases their relations to each other on a common interest in a central software technology (Hanssen, 2012). A SE is a means to construct large software system on top of a software platform by composing components developed by actors both internal and external.…”

Section: Software Ecosystem Surrounding Foss Implementationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Open Source Adoption in Health Sector: Understanding the Stakeholder Relationships in a Resource Constrained Setting

Hewapathirana

Sahay

2017

E J Info Sys Dev Countries

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Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is increasingly being the choice to strengthen health information systems (HIS) in Low and Middle Income Country (LMIC) contexts. FOSS is becoming a commercially viable option in today's software industry. In LMIC context, bridging the gap between generic open source design and specific local contexts calls for the participation of multi-sector stakeholders to realise FOSS implementations. This multi-sector stakeholder network, together with the FOSS platform can be theorised to form a software ecosystem (SE) around FOSS implementations in a resource constrained setting.In this new paradigm, governing the open source acquisition and implementation process becomes a central challenge, which is distinct from the governance of open source developer communities. This paper attempts to identify the essential stakeholder categories involved in FOSS HIS implementations in a LMIC context and; to understand the stakeholder interactions in this SE at different stages. The analysis is based on a longitudinal case study of two open source HIS implementations and an attempt to establish a FOSS governance body in the State health sector of Sri Lanka during the period 2011-2014. The paper contributes by suggesting a model to understand the essential stakeholder categories and their interactions in FOSS implementation SE in resource constrained settings.

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A longitudinal case study of an emerging software ecosystem: Implications for practice and theory

Cited by 96 publications

References 12 publications

Variability mechanisms in software ecosystems

Variability mechanisms in software ecosystems

Evaluating the Governance Model of Hardware-Dependent Software Ecosystems – A Case Study of the Axis Ecosystem

Open Source Adoption in Health Sector: Understanding the Stakeholder Relationships in a Resource Constrained Setting

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