David Rowe: Open Hardware business models

FOSSBazaar is no longer being updated. The information on this site is preserved for your convenience but may be out of date. Please visit Linux Foundation's Open Compliance Program for current information and activities.

tbm's picture

In 2005 David started working on open hardware techniques for telephony. The idea of open hardware (people collaborating to build free hardware designs just like open software) was a big experiment, especially when it came to commercial products.

Much has happened since then. New projects, and even businesses have spun out of the project. Coolest of all - open hardware products are now in volume production. People are buying and using these products - often in preference to products developed using traditional closed development models. Open hardware works!

The talk will discuss:

  • open hardware business models
  • differences with open software
  • why open hardware is better than closed for business
  • how open is open hardware
  • extreme open hardware

David Rowe has 20 years experience in the development of DSP-based telephony and sat-com hardware/software. David has a wide mix of skills including software, hardware, and project management including a PhD in DSP theory. He has held executive level positions in the sat-com industry (www.dspace.com.au) and has built and successfully exited a small business (www.voicetronix.com). However he has decided he is better at debugging machines than people so currently chooses to hack telephony hardware and software full time.