According to various media sources in Israel, a new proposed law
may make that nation an open source-only country.
The proposal–actually an amendment to the Mandatory Tenders
Law–would require government agencies and institutions to only
purchase software based on open-source code.
Agencies could deviate from the purchase of open source
software, but only with the approval of the Minister of Finance,
who would be required to justify all exceptions in writing.
The proposal originates from Keneset Member Nehama Ronen, a
member of the Center Party. While Linux Today was unable to reach
Ronen for comment, it has learned that one of the primary reasons
she has proposed this law was to bridge the Microsoft licensing
price gap that prevents poorer Isreali citizens from purchasing
PCs.
By shifting the government to open source software, citizens of
Israel would have more incentive to acquire open source software
for themselves, if only to be compatible with government and
education agencies. It is hoped that this lead-by-example policy
will effectively reduce the overall cost of a PC by removing
Microsoft Windows and other proprietary software from the
equation.
Critics of the proposed law are skeptical as to whether this
plan will work, and have accused Ronen of not letting citizens
decide for themselves what software they should buy.
For more information, readers of Hebrew are invited to peruse
the story link below, provided by reader Koby Goshen.
Additional
Information (in Hebrew)