MySQL alliance announced

Open source

A open source database initiative has been announced today aiming to bring together all MySQL products and services into one unbiased location.

That's the claim by the creators of the "Open Database Alliance", database engineering company Monty Program Ab and MySQL services and support group Percona, who plan to open the site up to all companies and individuals looking to help contribute to the group.

Monty Widenius, founder of Monty Program Ab and quoted as the "the father of the MySQL database" is one of the founding members.

He said in a statement: "Our goal with the Open Database Alliance is to provide a central clearinghouse for MySQL development, to encourage a true open development environment with community participation, and to ensure that MySQL code remains extremely high quality."

"Participating members at this stage in the "Alliance" will have a strong voice in how the organisation is structured, and we look forward to collaborating with anyone in the industry that provides or depends on MySQL."

The other founding member, chief executive of Percona Peter Zaitsev, is also known for his expertise in the MySQL format.

Widenius quoted another member of the "Alliance" Arjen Lentz from Open Query, on his blog, saying: "This alliance is an excellent step, showing the maturity, breadth and depth of expertise for MySQL related services."

Earlier this week the chief executive of Data Core storage told IT PRO that open is the only way forward and both Widenius and Zaitsev seem to share this opinion.

Jennifer Scott

Jennifer Scott is a former freelance journalist and currently political reporter for Sky News. She has a varied writing history, having started her career at Dennis Publishing, working in various roles across its business technology titles, including ITPro. Jennifer has specialised in a number of areas over the years and has produced a wealth of content for ITPro, focusing largely on data storage, networking, cloud computing, and telecommunications.

Most recently Jennifer has turned her skills to the political sphere and broadcast journalism, where she has worked for the BBC as a political reporter, before moving to Sky News.