Finding Sponsors for an Open Source Project?

vertigo72 asks: "What's the best way to find sponsors for an open source project? Is there some people or foundations that give grants for the development of free software? We develop an open source (GPL) box office software: phpMyTicket. At our knowledge at the moment this is the only open source software of this kind. The program is in advanced beta stage and was already used in production environment by us and by other people. The program is rather complex and big: we support online ticket shop, box office with thermal printer and control at doors with barcode scanner. Smarty, PDF and email template engines are used. Paypal and some other gateways are supported. Now we want to continue and to add more professional features, but alas this requires more funding." "We tried to finance our development ourselves, but that didn't work. We tried support, installation and customization, and also a commercial license, but there are just not enough requests. We also had few donations (to the tune of around $50) via Sourceforge. Now, we searching for alternative solutions like sponsoring. Is there someone out there who can help us to keep the software free?"

Comments

what's the commercial solution

[pointyhairedmba]

I'll go ahead and ask the MBA question. What's the competing commercial product? How much does it cost per year? How much will a theater chain save with your solution? Quantiffy those answers into a simple NPV model and pitch it to execs at theater chains.

Sounds to me like a dead end...

[Kjella]

"(...) Now we want to continue and to add more professional features, but alas this requires more funding. (...) Now, we searching for alternative solutions like sponsoring. Is there someone out there who can help us to keep the software free?"

...there's no commercial value in the project, but you still want to add features just for the hell of it? That's cool, but don't expect to get paid for it. What's the future of the project if you do not recieve funding? Abandon it so others can pick it up if they want to? Close the source (assuming you have all the copyrights)?

I'm sorry, but if you're looking to get paid for it, you need a project someone is willing to pay *for*. If there was such a sponsoring foundation, I would suggest they use it to replace some central software many people use, like IE/Outlook/Office/Photoshop etc. I would consider spending it on such a niche system like tickets to be a very strange choice.

Kjella

Re:Why, why, why?

[cduffy]

"Hey, can you help me find someone who will give us money to give free help to people charging admission to shows?"

Running a movie theatre is a low-margin business -- typically one loses money on the tickets and needs to make it up elsewhere (concession stand, ads, etc). If one can get the software to run the business (ie. by paying an open source project to add the features needed to make it adequate for one's needs) for less than the cost of comparable commercial solutions -- well, then you're ahead.

It makes sense, then, that someone with a vested interest in not giving money to the commercial vendors of such software will find such a project as this interesting, and potentially a worthy recipient of (some level of) funding. Ideally, you'd want to target folks who are heavily hit by the pricing model of the commercial competitors -- say, those who own a number of theatres, or those whose theatres have multiple entrances or ticket booths if that's how the commercial software is priced -- or those who need features the commercial competitors don't currently provide.

Why

[Turn-X Alphonse]

Ask yourself, why should you get the money over another OSS project? Who will benefit from your work, who will want to use it? Why should they pay you to do it?

Work out who, when and why. Then focus on the "data" you pick up. Ring round and ask what the companies themselvs "want" from software and get it done ASAP so you can go "oh yes we have that, we're looking for funding and will offer support to anyone who donates x amount of money (say $500, it's nothing to a company) for 6 months. After that we're unsure of what we'll charge but it's unlikely to be much more. But obviously discounts for any who supported us in the early days".

Re:We really don't care for php applications

[uss_valiant]

take a look at the source code of Gallery 2 http://gallery.sf.net/ read the coding guidelines, patterns etc. and then come back and report if you'd still say that it's php and not the coder that is the origin of all these php prejudices.

there are other reasons why most php scripts end up being spaghetti code.

add more professional features?

[AstroDrabb]

Now we want to continue and to add more professional features, but alas this requires more funding.

So try to act professional maybe? Calling your program phpMyTicket is pretty lame. Go to some big theater exec and tell them that name. You will be out the door in a second. What is with the "php" in the name? Do you really think _anyone_ that would actually _pay_ you for the software cares if it is based on PHP?

The program is in advanced beta stage and was already used in production environment by us and by other people.

Umm, you using it in your parents basement on your PIII doesn't count as a "production" environment, unless of course you own your own theater(s). Who are the "other people"? Mom, Dad and your auntie? Seriously, if you want to impress a company with some cash, you need to either be up front and tell them that "they will be the first 'large scale installation'", or you need to put out references that can be validated and not just "us and other people".

Paypal and some other gateways are supported

What other gateways? How many real theaters will be using Paypal? Cash or a major credit card please.

The program is rather complex and big: we support online ticket shop, box office with thermal printer and control at doors with barcode scanner.

There is nothing complex about an "online ticket shop". The same goes for the other items you mentioned. All of those functions can be implemented in a day or so or more likely for a company buying software, as a ready to go package. Maybe instead of trivial "geek" features, try to implement PHB features. How about your "Star Ticket Box System" implements all the tax rates of every zip code in the USA. Wow! Hey some PHB for one of the major theater companies may get all wet over that! Most companies that _can_ pay for custom software do not have simple needs like "you can order a ticket!". They want and expandable, modular system that can grow with their needs (even if your software currently cannot grow with their needs, tell them it can and then make sure you deliver).

We tried support, installation and customization, and also a commercial license, but there are just not enough requests.

Gee, I wonder why?

Some of my post may have sounded harsh, however I wrote it to help you. I am a senior programmer for a fortune 500, multi-billion dollar company. I have pulled more hair out then you can imagine on the type of software that our PHB's have purchased. It _all_ comes down to PRESENTATION. Some of the "packages" that our PHB's have purchased have been total crap. One of our PHB's spent over $10,000 on a few little Flash demo's (less than 60 seconds each) about how to do basic computer tasks like using a mouse, keyboard, etc! Any graphics dude with about 1-2 months of Flash could have done it. However, the company that sold this "solution" has some business-style and didn't really sell a product, instead they learned what this PHB wanted and made him think he got it!

Learn from this. Make your product as modular as possible. Drop the stupid geek name. What the hell is "phpMyTicket"? Come up with a name that will make some PHB think they are getting a total "ticketing solution". Even if your product is not there yet, make the PHB think it is. Ask the PHB what he is looking for and assure him that your product will deliver (even if it currently does not). This way you get a software sale as well as a consulting sale to "customize" the software for this business.

Good luck!