Core Sponsors Announced For Spring 2012 Open Source Think Tank, Including Adobe, Global Inventures, HP, Motorola, SAP and SugarCRM; Additional Case Study by Department of Veterans Affairs

BURLINGTON, Mass., Feb. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Olliance Group, a Black Duck company, and DLA Piper today announced core Open Source Think Tank 2012 conference sponsors, including Adobe, Global Inventures, HP, Motorola, SAP and SugarCRM. The seventh annual executive event, dedicated to the commercial application of open source, mobile and cloud computing technologies, will address the theme of industry-driven community innovation and will be held April 12-14, 2012 in Napa, California.

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"Open source, cloud and mobile technologies are an important path to innovation for SAP," said Claus von Riegen, Vice President Industry Standards and Open Source, SAP. "As we expand our use of open source to shorten development cycles while increasing new product innovation, this interchange of ideas and solutions becomes increasingly important. What happens at Think Tank influences how we think at SAP."

"The theme of this year's Think Tank inspired our decision to sponsor this event," said Deepak Kamlani, CEO Global Inventures. "Global Inventures is focused on expanding innovation and collaboration via global multi-stakeholder collaboration, across multiple industry sectors. Think Tank is providing valuable focus on the strategic implications of OSS -- its importance to the technology ecosystem is undeniable."

Think Tank attendees, including CEOs, CIOs, CTOs, legal experts, investors and senior executives will discuss the current state and future direction of commercial open source.  This exclusive, semi-annual event will feature a case study from the GENIVI Alliance and, announced today, a case study about the Veterans Administration open sourcing their electronic health care records management system.

"The GENIVI Alliance is honored to be a core case study for the Open Source Think Tank," said Steve Crumb, Executive Director, GENIVI Alliance.  "GENIVI is driving the adoption of open source in the automotive industry through its in-vehicle infotainment software platform, and we look forward to gathering insights from the expert audience at Think Tank and implementing these insights into our work."

The spring 2012 Open Source Think Tank will be held at the Silverado Resort in Napa. Co-hosted by Olliance Group and DLA Piper, the conference includes an interactive format of group sessions, group exercises and case studies in which participants share concerns, issues, experiences and common challenges while collaboratively developing solutions. The event will be led by co-hosts Andrew Aitken, founder and GM, Olliance Group, and Mark Radcliffe, Partner, DLA Piper.

About the Open Source Think Tank

The Open Source Think Tank is the only by-invitation gathering where leading global experts come together to collaborate on the issues facing commercial open source and the evolution of cloud computing. The unique format uses real-world business cases to engage the audience in brainstorming solutions to the adoption and maturation of open source and cloud computing. The structured working sessions and social activities are designed to connect the participants and facilitate the building of strong business relationships across the entire ecosystem.

For more information about Think Tank, or to apply for an invitation, please visit http://thinktank.olliancegroup.com.

About Olliance Group

Olliance Group, a Black Duck company, is the leading open source business and strategy consulting firm. Our mission is to help clients capitalize on the strategic, technological, and financial benefits of open source software. Clients include Fortune 500 enterprises, Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), start-up firms, venture capital groups and government entities.  

About DLA Piper

DLA Piper a leading global legal services practice providing services to the open source industry. The firm provides advice in corporate, tax, licensing, trademark and licensing to both large and small companies. With 3,500 lawyers in 29 countries and 67 cities, DLA Piper can assist companies virtually anywhere in the world, from the US to the People's Republic of China to Dubai.  For more information, please visit http://www.dlapiper.com.

About Black Duck Software

Black Duck Software is the leading provider of strategy, products and services for automating the management, governance and secure use of open source software, at enterprise scale, in a multi-source development process. Black Duck enables companies to shorten time-to-solution and reduce development costs while mitigating the management, compliance and security challenges associated with open source software. Black Duck Software powers Koders.com, the industry's leading code search engine for open source, and Ohloh.net, the largest free public directory of open source software and a vibrant web community of free and open source software developers and users. Black Duck is among the 500 largest software companies in the world, according to Softwaremag.com. For more information, visit www.blackducksoftware.com.

SOURCE Black Duck Software