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Idea #20508: Emphasize Ubuntu's reliance on closed-source technology on Ubuntu.com

Written by Murrquan the 3 Jul 09 at 01:17. Related project: ubuntu.com. Status: New
Rationale
The marketing on Ubuntu.com goes on and on about Free / Open-Source Software. For example, the Ubuntu Story page ( http://www.ubuntu.com/community/ubuntustory ) talks about a "strong commitment to freedom," while Ubuntu.com's philosophy page ( http://www.ubuntu.com/community/ubuntustory/philosophy ) says "Every computer user should have the freedom to download, run, copy, distribute, study, share, change and improve their software for any purpose, without paying licensing fees."

The problem is, not only are these pages kind of dry, they also miss vital marketing opportunities. Ubuntu may be a free operating system, with optional nonfree components that we warn people about up-front and keep separate in the repositories, but it's developed using nonfree software -- the "special sauce" Canonical keeps to itself, and isn't going to make Open-Source even as it opens up the rest of Launchpad (see http://blog.launchpad.net/podcast/launchpod-15-launchpads-going-open-source#com ment-26049 for Mark Shuttleworth's thoughts on this). And when Ubuntu One comes out later this year, we're going to have an incredibly slick, proprietary / closed-source online backup feature that only works with Ubuntu.

Why aren't we spreading the word? Apple's gone all kinds of places emphasizing the things you can only get from Apple. Canonical shouldn't be hiding its "special sauce," or downplaying the fact that its online services offerings are proprietary. It should be flaunting it!

Instead of talking about "Free Software" and "Pass it on," like on the ShipIt CDs, we should be talking about the things you can only get from Canonical. The things that no one can duplicate for their own Linux-based operating system, whether they're backed by big corporations or made up of third-world volunteers. (Actually, we should probably downplay the whole "disadvantaged third-world people" angle altogether ... they're going to be locked in to Canonical as a vendor by using Ubuntu One and our other online services, even more than they already are. And it never looks good to be seen as exploiting people.)

We need to downplay the Free Software rhetoric. Canonical only uses it when they think it's to their advantage, and we should all do the same. And we should promote both the Free / Open-Source AND the proprietary / closed-source offerings that make Ubuntu what it is.

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Solution #1: Emphasize software you can only get from Canonical in Ubuntu marketing
Written by Murrquan the 3 Jul 09 at 01:17.
Instead of this "freedom" talk, we should emphasize the cool development systems that're part of Launchpad that no one can duplicate because of Canonical's copyrights, like Soyuz and Codehosting. And when Ubuntu One comes out, we should make a HUGE deal about its seamless integration with Ubuntu, and only Ubuntu. And about how it's not Free / Open-Source, and you can only get it from Canonical.

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andruk (Idea reviewer) wrote on the 4 Jul 09 at 08:26
To be brutally honest, regular users don't care how free their operating system is, they just want it to work. That's what marketing should be keying in on. If Ubuntu One just works, then it should be marketed with such wording.

That being said, the current title: "Emphasize Ubuntu's reliance on closed-source technology on Ubuntu.com" really doesn't agree with this idea - the idea is to play down the FOSS aspect of Ubuntu and promote the usefulness of the distribution, not promote or emphasize the closed-source side of Canonical. My suggestion for a proper title would be "Market Ubuntu as a solution that 'Just Works' (tm)" (and actually trademark the phrase "Just Works" to you can legally use the TM symbol).

Clorox wrote on the 4 Jul 09 at 18:52
Ubuntu One is open-source. It is not proprietary. It is open-source, and not proprietary. Ubuntu One is an open-source application.

However, Ubuntu One is commercial. Commercial and proprietary are two different things. Proprietary and commercial are not the same thing. Proprietary is very different from commercial.

I guess I have to repeat myself a lot, since people never seem to understand...

Murrquan wrote on the 4 Jul 09 at 19:57
Clorox: That is not correct. The server-side code for Ubuntu One is proprietary code. I would not be upset about it if it weren't.

Which, I guess it's obvious that I am upset about it, and that I was being kind of facetious with this suggestion. I apologize for the trolling, and would not be surprised if this suggestion were marked as spam or offensive.

Andruk is right though, and I agree with him. Ubuntu should de-emphasize freedom and openness (because it's not delivering that), and emphasize usability (because it's trying to deliver that). What I don't like is that everything about Ubuntu marketing emphasizes "Humanity to others," help the downtrodden, uplift the oppressed, use Free Software etc., when they're trying to make money by selling proprietary software / services. I feel like that's kind of cynical of them.

Maybe Andruk's comment should be turned into a full-blown idea and actually receive support. It would help to make Ubuntu marketing both shinier and more honest. And would serve as a signal to the idealists like me that our time would be better spent elsewhere.

ushimitsudoki wrote on the 5 Jul 09 at 03:48
I found this idea thought provoking enough to blog about it: http://meandubuntu.wordpress.com/2009/07/05/ubuntu-featuring-closed-source-tech nology/


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