XOOPS: XOOPS CMS/Microsoft Applications Deal “Inevitable”

Posted by: MithrandirOn 2004/4/1 11:35:18 8706 reads
As found on frxoops.org:

REDMOND, Wash., March 23, 2004 -- It has recently come to light that Kazumi Ono (known as Onokazu), the Head of the XOOPS Development Team and Helton Hartford, the Development Director at Microsoft’s Application Branch, have been discussing the possibility of future co-operation between the two groups. Hartford has announced his intention to buy out the GNU license for commercial use from the well known content manager, describing the process as “inevitable.”

He was also quick to point out the value of the XOOPS platform “… the XOOPS application is by the far the safest investment in the CMS range. The announcement of XOOPS 3.0 has us all very excited, and if things go well we’ll be integrating it into our core development process as soon as 2006.”

Hartford also hinted at the possibility of discounts for existing XOOPS users who want to upgrade to 3.0 once Microsoft have taken control. This news will no doubt be of great interest to the wider XOOPS community, and will help allay fears that the platform will become unavailable to those outside of Microsoft after the merger.

However, the Development Director has said that XOOPS support sites, such as http://www.xoops.org, will not be given the chance to upgrade to 3.0 after the merger, as these sites would only serve as “unnecessary competition” to Microsoft’s own Support Centre.

Since then it has emerged that Kazumi Ono has negotiated for top XOOPS figures, such as Herko Coomans and Goghs Cheng, to be offered contracts at Microsoft in order for them to remain at the forefront of the XOOPS development process during and after the integration process.

When pressed on a date for the signing of a contract, Ono would only go as far as saying “soon.” In any case, this development is sure to send shockwaves through out the XOOPS community.