This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Open platform" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR(January 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
In computing, an open platform describes a software system which is based on open standards, such as published and fully documented external application programming interfaces (API) that allow using the software to function in other ways than the original programmer intended, without requiring modification of the source code. Using these interfaces, a third party could integrate with the platform to add functionality.[1] The opposite is a closed platform.
An open platform does not mean it is open source, however most open platforms have multiple implementations of APIs. For example, Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is implemented by open source web servers as well as Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS). An open platform can consist of software components or modules that are either proprietary or open source or both. It can also exist as a part of closed platform, such as CGI, which is an open platform, while many servers that implement CGI also have other proprietary parts that are not part of the open platform.
An open platform implies that the vendor allows, and perhaps supports, the ability to do this. Using an open platform a developer could add features or functionality that the platform vendor had not completed or had not conceived of. An open platform allows the developer to change existing functionality, as the specifications are publicly available open standards.
A service-oriented architecture allows applications, running as services, to be accessed in a distributed computing environment, such as between multiple systems or across the Internet. A major focus of Web services is to make functional building blocks accessible over standard Internet protocols that are independent from platforms and programming languages. An open SOA platform would allow anyone to access and interact with these building blocks.
A 2008 Harvard Business School working paper, titled "Opening Platforms: How, When and Why?", differentiated a platform's openness in four aspects and gave example platforms.[2]
Aspect of openness of a platform[1]
Android
Linux
Windows
Macintosh
iOS
Demand-Side Use (End-user)
open
open
open
open
open
Supply-Side User (Application developer)
open
open
open
open
closed
Platform Provider (Hardware/OS Bundle)
open
open
open
closed
closed
Platform Sponsor (Design & IP Rights Owner)
open
open
closed
closed
closed
^ abEisenmann, Thomas R.; Parker, Geoffrey; Van Alstyne, Marshall (August 31, 2008). "Opening Platforms: How, When and Why?" (PDF). Harvard Business School Entrepreneurial Management Working Paper No. 09-030. Harvard Business School. p. 2. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1264012. Retrieved 2015-06-30.
^Eisenmann, Thomas R.; Parker, Geoffrey; Van Alstyne, Marshall (August 31, 2008). "Opening Platforms: How, When and Why?" (PDF). Harvard Business School Entrepreneurial Management Working Paper No. 09-030. Harvard Business School. p. 2. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1264012. Retrieved 2015-06-30.
OpenPlatform Communications (OPC) is a series of standards and specifications for industrial telecommunication. They are based on Object Linking and...
In computing, an openplatform describes a software system which is based on open standards, such as published and fully documented external application...
Platform as a service (PaaS) or application platform as a service (aPaaS) or platform-based service is a category of cloud computing services that allows...
Facebook Platform was launched in 2010. The platform offers a set of programming interfaces and tools which enable developers to integrate with the open "social...
OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA) is a cross-platform, open-source, IEC62541 standard for data exchange from sensors to cloud applications developed by...
an integral part of the open-source distribution of Erlang. The name OTP was originally an acronym for Open Telecom Platform, which was a branding attempt...
access to non-approved applicants or content. This is in contrast to an openplatform, wherein consumers generally have unrestricted access to applications...
A platformer (also called a platform game, and sometimes a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move...
The Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) is a set of computer interface specifications for an autonomous computer subsystem that provides management...
have led to the awareness of the security of applets. Applets in an openplatform environment should provide secure interactions between different applications...
The Web platform is a collection of technologies developed as open standards by the World Wide Web Consortium and other standardization bodies such as...
OpenPlatform Management Architecture (OPMA) is an open, royalty free standard for connecting a modular, platform hardware management subsystem (an "mCard")...
open-platform intelligent personal assistant launched and developed by Alibaba Group, currently used in the Tmall Genie smart speaker. The platform was...
OpenShift is a family of containerization software products developed by Red Hat. Its flagship product is the OpenShift Container Platform — a hybrid cloud...
OpenPlatform for NFV is a collaborative open source platform for network functions virtualization. It was started by the Linux Foundation in 2014. Member...
BlueSky OpenPlatform is an open-source software e-learning project designed to balance education resources between well-developed Chinese cities and poor...
Web Application OpenPlatform Interface better known as WOPI is a protocol that enables a client to access and change files stored on a server. The protocol...
OBS Studio (also Open Broadcaster Software or OBS, for short) is a free and open-source, cross-platform screencasting and streaming app. It is available...
formation of the Open Handset Alliance on November 5, 2007, the OHA also unveiled Android Open Source Project, an open-source mobile phone platform based on the...
Group. Geely refers the SEA platform as "open-source," meaning the manufacturer is open to supply the platform to other automakers. Geely Holding has claimed...
manufactured by Wrightbus, it is notable for featuring a "hop-on hop-off" rear openplatform similar to the original Routemaster bus design but updated to meet requirements...
A computing platform, digital platform, or software platform is an environment in which software is executed. It may be the hardware or the operating system...
managed by SAP. The SAP Cloud Platform integrated data and business processes. SAP Cloud Platform was an openplatform-as-a-service, which included the...
developed a series of platforms tied to certain specific radio standards: OpenPlatform API or "OPA" is the name given to the platform used across Sony Ericsson...
Zoom also offers an openplatform allowing third-party developers to build custom applications on its unified communications platform. The company was founded...