Vol. 574 No. 1
293 Mr. Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Education and Science the amount his Department spent in 2002 on IT software licences; the amount of that budget which was spent on products of a company (details supplied); if his Department uses Linux or similar open source software; and if it has a policy position with regard to the promotion and use of such open source software, in the interests of cost savings or the development of a more transparent software industry. [26352/03]
The Department of Education and Science spent just under €1.1 million on software licences and €450,000 on software licence support, which in many cases includes upgrades to the software being supported, in 2002. The licences were for network and database server operating system software, office applications and security software. Of this amount, €167,000 was spent on Microsoft licences and a futher €80,000 for Microsoft support, including upgrades of those licences.
The Department purchases Microsoft licences and support at discounted rates. The Department does not at present use Linux or similar open source software. Several are considered in choosing operating system software, including effectiveness and efficiency of the software, security, migration costs, availability of training and support. The Department will be maintaining a keen interest in developments surrounding the viability of open source software.
