Wellington excitement builds as Open Source // Open Society releases 50 more tickets

With less than three days to go, innovative new conference Open Source // Open Society (OS//OS) in Wellington has sold out.

However, the event organisers have secured a larger space to hold the keynote addresses and are excited to be able to release 50 more tickets.

The presence of the world’s biggest repository of open source code, Github, has meant serious interest from New Zealand’s leading tech companies, as well as anyone interested in what ‘Open’ means for government, education, data and innovation.

Taking place at the Michael Fowler Centre on April 16-17, tickets have been snapped up by a mix of entrepreneurs, software developers and open government enthusiasts.

"People are curious about the questions we are asking and what might emerge from a true collaboration between technologist, the public sector, and business leaders," says Silvia Zuur, Event Director, OS//OS.

Keynote addresses will cover topics like ‘How can ventures adhere to open source principles and be financially successful? ’ or ‘Does open government data really help open society?’

Founder of the Open Technology Institute Sascha Meinrath will open the two days with a much awaited analysis on how society is critically poised between a more liberatory technological ecosystem or a far darker path (which we’re currently on).

"Entire industries become transformed when a critical mass embraces openness," adds Brandon Keepers, head of open source, Github.

"Openness drives innovation and those that embrace it survive."

Alongside key international tech player, Github, the Wellington City Council is a major sponsor behind the event.

The Enspiral based event organisers have been successful in bringing the world’s biggest repository of open source code to Wellington to cohost the event with Wellington based startups Loomio and Chalkle.

"To have GitHub cohost their first conference outside of the US in Wellington is a strong endorsement of our tech capability," adds Gerard Quinn, CEO, Grow Wellington.

"Open source approaches align well with the collaborative nature of the tech community here.

"Wellington companies like Catalyst IT, Silverstripe and Loomio have achieved international success using innovative open source models."

Open source development is based on the ideas of mass collaboration, transparency and meaningful participation and its principles are becoming increasingly important in all spheres of society.

Building on the success of open source software in powering the growth of the internet OS//OS will explore developments in open government, open education, open data, and open business.