share magazine november

8/14/2019 Share Magazine November

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ez.no

ImprovedPartner Program(p3)

New large media portal on eZ Publish

(p4)

Norwegian county chooses eZ Publish

(p6)

True Open Source - the secret

(p8)

Site o the month

(p12)

S H A R E !M A G A Z I N EThe eZ Ecosystem Newsletter November 2008

SUBSCRIBE TO SHARE! MAGAZINE * SUBSCRIBE TO SHARE! MAGAZINE

Crew wanted> SupportConsultant

> Developer

>Sales Manager

>Global Partner Manager

Prole interviewVP Global Services

Jostein Knudsen

(p10)
http://ez.no/survey/view/83http://ez.no/survey/view/83http://ez.no/company/career/support_consultant_for_norwegian_and_international_customershttp://ez.no/company/career/support_consultant_for_norwegian_and_international_customershttp://ez.no/company/career/support_consultant_for_norwegian_and_international_customershttp://ez.no/company/career/2_new_ez_labs_developershttp://ez.no/company/career/sales_manager_online_digital_mediahttp://ez.no/company/career/sales_manager_online_digital_mediahttp://ez.no/company/career/global_partner_managerhttp://ez.no/company/career/global_partner_managerhttp://ez.no/company/career/sales_manager_online_digital_mediahttp://ez.no/company/career/2_new_ez_labs_developershttp://ez.no/company/career/support_consultant_for_norwegian_and_international_customershttp://ez.no/survey/view/83http://ez.no/


2/12

Improved partner program

(p3)

New large media portal

on eZ Publish

(p4)

Student portal on open

standards and eZ Publish

(p6)

eZ believes in true enter-prise open source

(p8)

Prole interview with VP

o Global Services

(p11)

Site ot the month

(p12)

SHARE! Magazine is a monthly newsletter about the eZ Ecosystem. It eatures

interviews, pictures, articles, reviews and content related to Open Source sotware,

business and development. You can subscribe to this magazine by clicking here.

The Evolution of an Open Source Business Model

As an Open Source entrepreneur, I remember those

times when the most requent question I got at IT

exhibitions was something along the lines o: Why are

you here? You cannot aord to be here.

When we started eZ back in 1999, we did so with the

belie that an Open Source business model could createthe most value or the entire ecosystem. Even though

we did not have a oolproo plan in mind, we believed in

our model. We went on to spend almost 8 years and 10

million USD building this company. Today, eZ is a

protable company that continues to grow, and we are

seeing other Open Source companies becoming

protable as well.

The true power o Open Source is in the power o openinnovation, where a large group o people contribute to

make the best sotware possible. To be protable, we

have to ask ourselves, What are customers willing to

pay or i the sotware itsel is ree? eZ has knowledge

and we take responsibility or our sotware. We can

sell knowledge through training, expert consulting, and

books; we can sell responsibility through guarantees,

support, and maintenance.

Based on the same sotware that you can download or

ree, eZ Publish Premium includes guarantees, support,

and maintenance. It is sold as a subscription service and

is the backbone o our business.

As long as we continue to add value or our customers,

eZ will continue to grow with a solid Open Source

business model.

Aleksander Farstad

CEO eZ Systems

Page 2 SHARE! Magazine November 2008

ez.no

Content The true power o Open SourceBy Aleksander Farstad
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eZ improves their Partner Program in light orecent growth

Due to growing demand around the eZ Publish Content ManagementSystem, eZs Proessional Partner Network has experienced incredible

growth over the past two years. eZ recognizes the important o itsPartner Network and is introducing an updated program.

Changes include an updated training and certication program or Partners, a clearer distinction

between the dierent Partner levels, and a stronger commitment rom Gold Partners around the

subscription model.

From 50 to 230 Partners

eZ has a clear Partner strategy where all implementation work is done by its ocial Partners.Such work includes design, integration, and hosting services. As the creator o eZ Publish, eZs

role is to enable Partners to deliver the best solutions by backing them up with training,

certication, expert consulting, and support & maintenance.

The demand or eZ Publish among large organizations has contributed signicantly to the

Partner Networks recent growth. In 2006, eZ had 50 worldwide Partners. Two years later,

almost 230 companies are ocial eZ Partners.

eZs presence as a leading sotware vendor helps customers to choose among qualied Partners.

Enterprise Open Source makes us able to qualiy our Partners, explains Bertrand Maugain,

Global Partner Manager at eZ. Many enterprises choose eZ Publish because it is backed by

a trustable entity that can qualiy and recommend the most relevant IT companies around the

world or their specic needs. This is a key dierentiating actor when compared to most other

Open Source CMS.

Training, certication, commitment an assurance o quality

The eZ Partner Program combines Open Source values with commercial benets. It rewards

Partners or their community and commercial activities.

The program is open to any IT company able to deliver services around eZ Publish. eZ provides

special training and certication services to help new Partners to start with this Enterprise

Content Management System. We are dedicated to bringing new Partners up to speed quickly

by certiying them. This is key or eZ to answer the growing demand around our technology,

says Aleksander Farstad, CEO o eZ.


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A trained and certied Partner can now reach the second o our Partner levels immediately to

become a Silver Partner.

To reach the Gold Partner level, companies also commit to delivering all o their projects based

on eZ Publish Premium, which ensures that customer websites come with support,

maintenance, and guarantees delivered by eZ.

Benets o being an ocial eZ Partner

Being an ocial eZ Partner has many benets, the details o which depend on the companysPartner level. Below is a brie outline o the Partner benets:

Receive project referrals

eZ gets an increaseing number o inquiries every day rom organizations who are looking to

establish or improve their online presence. Each request is qualied and handed over to the most

relevant Partner.

Earn discounts and commissions on eZs products and services

The best Partners get privileges when it comes to accessing our services, enabling them to

deliver quicker and better solutions.

Visibility

Each Partner gets an individual listing on eZs website. eZ urther promotes their most

committed Partners in their press releases, material, events, and presentations.

eZs updated program is eZ Partner Program 2009. It includes improvements based on Partnerseedback to suit Partners business models even better.

New large media portal on eZ Publish

Prisma Presse, the French magazine publisher, has several websites running on eZ Publish, such as

Gala.r and FemmeActuelle.r. Thereore, when it launched its new womens magazine Femmes, eZ

Publish was the natural choice or the accompanying website.


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In an interview with Bertrand Maugain rom eZ, Monique Chayette at Prisma Presse answered

a ew questions about the purpose o the site o the month winning website Femmes.com, the

development process, and site eatures.

BM: Please tell us a bit more about Femmes.com: what is the goal o this web portal?

MC: The website perectly matches Femmes magazine, tting and extending the magazine.

Femmes was launched in May 2008, and it brings together ashion and culture, along with some

wellness themes. On the topic o ashion, Femmes deals with both luxury and clothing products,

since many women who are ond o ashion are also interested in exclusive products.

On the topic o culture, the editorial team produces relevant articles that match the news rom

the magazine section Le Mois (This Month), consisting o articles about movies, plays,

music, and exhibitions. Femmes also oers Le journal des livres, an 8-page booklet with booksamples and reviews, as well as interviews.

As or wellness content, Femmes has articles about beauty, travel, and design, taking some

innovative approaches.

O course, the website oers interactivity in addition to content related to the magazine. Site

visitors can comment on articles and give eedback about the magazine.
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BM: How was the Femmes.com project timeline and what was the general approach?

MC: When we built the website, we relied on best practices collected during previous projects,

as well as all o the eatures already implemented. The plan was to re-use existing eatures

rom our toolbox as much as possible.

In act, the duration o each project phase was signicantly shortened or unctional speci-

cations, implementation, and testing. In total, we had a team o two people working or two

months.

BM: Is there any specic unctionality in eZ Publish that Femmes.com really needed?

MC: Not specically. We managed to re-use eatures already developed or other Prisma Presse

websites; such eatures include user registration, newsletters, comments, quizzes, polls, and

search engine optimization. We were also able to tap into our web hosting know-how.

BM: Do you have a support agreement with eZ?

MC: Yes, with an eZ Publish Premium contract.

BM: Thank you or your time

For more inormation, please visit: http://www.emmes.com

Norwegian county builds student web portalbased on open standards and eZ Publish

The county o Mre and Romsdal in Norway has converted its studentservices ICT (Inormation and Communications Technology) strategyrom an inrastructure-based model to a web-based model. This newmodel, called UNGweb (Young Web), is based on open standards andeZ Publish, and has enriched the student experience and saved thecounty millions o Norwegian krones.


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The main goal was to move all student ICT services to a web platorm, oering as many tools

via the Internet as possible. This resulted in a very cost-eective structure, empowering stu-

dents to personalize their own computer environment but also saving schools rom having to

maintain local servers, expensive le and print solutions, login and user administration, and

more.

Another goal was to create a central youth portal, stimulating activity and discussion, and with

a dedicated login area or junior college students. In this way, services and youth-related inor-

mation could be made available to all youths in the county.

Please visit our case study section or detailed inormation on the project.

ez.no
http://ez.no/customers/case_studieshttp://ez.no/http://ez.no/http://ez.no/customers/case_studies


8/12


eZ believes in true Enterprise Open Source oreZ Publish

In this article, eZ Systems CEO, Aleksander Farstad gives someinside ino to their business model based on true Open Source.

We hear more and more about how Open Source is infuencing the sotware industry. Not too

long ago, Open Source was perceived as a movement or idealists and hardcore programmers.

As an Open Source entrepreneur, I remember those times when the most requent question I got

at IT exhibitions was something along the lines o: Why are you here? You cannot aord to be

here.

Over the past 2-3 years, there has been tremendous change in the sotware industry. This

change is not so much about the quality o Open Source sotware (which has been very capable

or quite some time), but its perception in the market. Today, Open Source means business.

The value o Open Source is quite clear or users o Open Source sotware, since they get more

reedom and do not have to worry about sotware licenses. This has moved the power balance

rom the provider to the users.

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For a sotware company with employees, rent, and utilities to pay each month it has not

always been clear as to how to build a business while giving away what you normally sell.

When we started eZ back in 1999, we did so with the belie that an Open Source business

model could create the most value or the entire ecosystem. The problem was that there was

no ormula on how we, the sotware company, could create a solid business with that model.

Even though we did not have a oolproo plan in mind, we believed in our model. We went on

to spend almost 8 years and 10 million USD building this company.

Today, eZ is a protable company that continues to grow, and we are seeing other Open

Source companies becoming protable as well.

Fundamentally, there are two dierent types o Open Source business models.

The rst involves making money rom limiting part o the sotware, where the ull unction-

ality is available with a paid license. This is not a true Open Source business model, and is

not much dierent rom a traditional license model. It is a bit o an easy route taken by someOpen Source vendors, one that I never cared that much or. I call this the enterprise

dilemma. The true power o Open Source is in the power o open innovation, where a large

group o people contribute to make the best sotware possible. I the enterprise version o

the sotware is not reely available, it has less users, inputs, and contributions. This results in

less innovation, which in the long term will prevent it rom becoming the best sotware.

I want to make the best sotware. And so eZ chooses the other alternative. The ull

unctionality o the sotware is Open Source, and is not limited in any way. To be protable,

we have to ask ourselves, What are customers willing to pay or i the sotware itsel isree? eZ has knowledge and we take responsibility or our sotware. We can sell knowledge

through training, expert consulting, and books; we can sell responsibility through guarantees,

support, and maintenance.

Consider an insurance company that makes its margins by being able to manage risk more

eectively with larger numbers o customers. As a sotware company, the more customers we

have, the better we are able to more eectively manage, x, and update the sotware. For our

customers, this reduces their risk and cost, the benets o which they are willing to pay or.

As a result, we have a scalable business. Based on the same sotware that you can downloador ree, eZ Publish Premium includes guarantees, support, and maintenance. It is sold as a

subscription service and is the backbone o our business.

As long as we continue to add value or our customers, eZ will continue to grow with a solid

Open Source business model.

Aleksander Farstad

CEO eZ Systems


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Prole interview with eZs VP o GlobalServices

An eZ crew member or almost three years, Jostein Knudsen loves

being part o the eZ Ecosystem. In this interview, he explains hisrole as eZs VP o Global Services, the value o eZ PublishPremium, the power o the eZ Ecosystem, and more.

eZ: How did you end up working at eZ?

Jostein: I applied or a job as a customer consultant

at eZ when I returned to Norway in early 2006,

ater I had nished my studies abroad. Two o my

riends, who were working or eZ at the time,

recommended that I apply. Ater an initial

interview with co-ounder and CEO Aleksander

Farstad, and then with the Managing Director o

eZ Nordic, I was given a developer test. Since I had

not developed with eZ Publish beore, the test

seemed quite challenging at the time. I had to

gure out where in eZ Publish to insert the new

code, and how all the parts in eZ Publish were

working together. However, it went well and I was oered a position at the eZ Nordic oce inSkien.

eZ: What is your position and what do you normally work on?

Jostein: My current position is VP o Global Services at the eZ headquarters in Skien, and I am

responsible or the service products we oer. The most well-known service product is eZ Publish

Premium, which is a support and maintenance subscription or our fagship product eZ Publish.

My day-to-day routines are both strategic and operational. The operational responsibilities

include working together with our support consultants at eZ oces around the world, as wellas with eZ Partners, eZ Labs, and our Maintenance team. We provide our subscribers with the

services they require to enable them to ocus on what they do best.

The strategic responsibilities include the renement o service products, and to make sure that

we continue to add value to them. Our customers are oered access to tools that automate the

maintenance o their sites, including a centralized dashboard overview o their eZ Publish

installation. We are continuously enhancing these tools based on eedback rom our customers

and eZ Partners, to make sure that we always provide an easy and sae way o maintaining and

operating an eZ Publish installation.


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eZ: What has been your best experience on the job?

Jostein: That would be the general eeling o being a part o the eZ Ecosystem. The eZEcosystem includes: the eZ crew rom all over the world; eZ Partners; and the generous

people in the community. We all work together towards a common goal o improving eZ

Publish. From my position, I see everyones contributions come together on the mailing lists,

bug trackers, orum postings, and so on. The eZ Ecosystem produces a solution to just about

any conceivable challenge, be it scalability, perormance, localization, and so on. This is a

very impressive thing to observe and to be a part o, and it happens every day.

eZ: What new eZ Publish eature(s) do you like best?

Jostein: O course there are many eatures I like, so I would just say all additions orenhancements to eZ Publish that make it easier or new users and developers to start using it.

eZ: What do you usually do outside o work?

Jostein: I enjoy working out and I play soccer as much as possible. Since it is winter (time or

indoor sports) I have also started playing foorball (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floorball). I

spend the weekends catching up with my riends.

eZ: Thank you or your time


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12/12

EST: Site o the Month winner

Energy Saving Trust is a non-prot organisation that provides reeimpartial advice on energy saving. Their advice can help you savemoney and ght climate change by reducing carbon dioxide

emissions rom your home.

Stay tuned or an interviw with EST early next week. For more inormation please visit:

http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/


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