MySQL, a toy Database?

I was fortunate enough to listen today to Mårten Mickos, the CEO of MySQL, the biggest name in Database (DB) software for web-based and other IT applications. And, for the remaining few who don't know it, one of the most extraordinary success of open source development (alongside Linux, Apache and Mozilla).

As he explained, contributing to their success has been their ability to both give away the product freely in an open source license (GPL) and commercialize it. The twist is that non-paying customers (i.e. the 35000 persons each day who download MySQL) constitute a unique test-base for quality assurance (QA) as well as bug-tracking, with the added advantage for MySQL of costing zero to manage and organize - call it the anti-Microsoft way of dealing with QA.

Adding that MySQL totally owns the source code, as the MySQL code is entirely written in-house, it somewhat protects the company from ugly SCO vs. IBM-related law suits and several other patent disputes. Therefore, the company combines the power of open source, while still maintaining the steering control of the project, thereby limiting the risks for corporate customers (that is, to make sure it is as good as it looks and to prove that it is possible for them to sell at such low prices - 595$ for the commercial version).

No, it's not too good to be true. MySQL is a bit like the IKEA of the digital era (yet another Swedish company!): high quality, despite low prices, thanks to streamlined development processes and rational delivery models. When you shop at IKEA, not a single screw is missing nor is in excess, and the manual is just as detailed as needed. The same goes there in the DB world: MySQL aims at being practical, not bloated. It just works, as to spoof another well-known IT company's former motto. Performance, Reliability, Ease of Use are prioritized over the bell and whistles that have forcedly put the DB offers from the Big Three (Oracle, IBM, Microsoft) out of reach (who said useless?) for most SMEs and even large corporations: did you know that MySQL powers (parts of) large audience sites like Google, Yahoo, Slashdot, Craigslist, Friendster, Feedster...?

I really see it as a perfect illustration of the theories given in The Innovator's Dilemma: in the late 90s, large DB mammoths were laughing at MySQL, this scandinavian toy coming from nowhere. Yet, it found a solid niche (reliable storage for web sites) and grew through it towards being a serious contender in large DB's realms: if SAP has choosen MySQL as the back-end DB for the next version of its ERP software, it's precisely because it sees past the risks of open source and acknowledges its qualities in such strategic move.

The real question is therefore: Where will the next competition between open and closed software take place? Will it be Linux vs. Windows, JBoss vs. Websphere, PHP vs. .NET ...? Will it be waged in the desktop, mobile, home environment(s)?

Comments

[Marten Mickos]

Ludovic,

Good summary of today, and rapidly posted! Glad you liked it.

Marten