Business source licensing (BSL) has recently emerged as an alternative software licensing model that aims to blend the benefits of both open-source and proprietary licensing. For developers and IT professionals evaluating solutions, understanding what BSL is and its implications can help inform licensing decisions.
What Is Business Source Licensing?
Like open-source licensing, BSL makes source code viewable and modifiable. This allows a community of developers to collectively improve the software. However, BSL applies restrictions on how the software can be used commercially. This provides revenue opportunities for the company publishing the software, similar to proprietary licensing.