Rumor: Amazon to open source Web Services APIs
Amazon.com's legal team is "investigating" open-sourcing their various Web services API's including those for EC2, and S3, Amazon's main cloud computing interfaces, according to Enomaly founder Reuven Cohen.
Amazon's APIs are already the de-facto standard used by thousands of Amazon Web Services (AWS) customers and arguably the best designed method of interaction for various cloud services. By releasing the APIs as open source (creative commons, or no-sue covenant or whatever), Amazon cements its way of doing things into the greater marketplace, while opening up an even broader ecosystem of applications to interact with AWS.
If other companies, such as Eucalyptus can be assured that they won't fall on the wrong side of the legal fence, it only ensures that they will continue to grow their usage of the Amazon systems and methods.
This would be a win for everyone interested in cloud computing. Let's hope it's true.
Follow me on Twitter @daveofdoom
Dave Rosenberg dishes up "Software, Interrupted" with nearly 15 years of technology and marketing experience that spans from Bell Labs to multiple start-up IPOs to open-source enterprise software companies. He is co-founder of MuleSource and currently serves as the general manager of Hardy Way. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure. You can contact Dave via e-mail at softwareinterrupted@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @daveofdoom. 
