HP expands deal with programming site

Open-source site CollabNet has deepened its deal with Hewlett-Packard, signing a pact under which HP and its business partners will use CollabNet's services to write software cooperatively.

HP helped spawn CollabNet's original mission, a company that would, for a fee, link programmers to companies in need of software development. The Palo Alto, Calif., computing giant also is among those that invested $35 million in the company in June 2000.

Originally, the site hoped to profit from interest in the open-source philosophy, under which programmers collaboratively develop software without restrictions on who may modify or redistribute it. One of CollabNet's first deals was with HP to host HP's open-source E-speak software.

But San Francisco-based CollabNet has expanded into proprietary software and dropped its original business as the hype around open-source projects such as Linux and Apache has diminished.

Under the new deal, HP will pay CollabNet for use of Internet tools that enable worldwide programming efforts, with features such as tracking changes to software and permitting authorized business partners to contribute, CollabNet said. HP also will pay CollabNet for consulting work in taking full advantage of the system and training HP personnel in its use.