A new vendor-neutral nonprofit organization aims to give the MySQL community a stronger voice in the future development of the popular open-source database.
Since acquiring MySQL from Sun Microsystems in 2010, Oracle has overseen development while offering both community and commercial editions.
Oracle still owns MySQL, its trademarks, and the underlying code. However, the open-source community launched the OurSQL Foundation on May 27 to promote transparency, collaboration, and greater visibility into MySQL's development roadmap.
"This Foundation will provide a platform to promote and support MySQL as a database, fostering collaboration across everyone looking to contribute to the broad MySQL ecosystem," said Vadim Tkachenko, co-founder at Percona, an enterprise software and services company specializing in open-source databases.
Tkachenko, who serves as president of the foundation's founding board, added that bringing the community together under the banner of an independent foundation will demonstrate that MySQL has a valid and vibrant future. The nonprofit will serve as an independent legal entity to coordinate events, community resources, and adoption efforts.
