The concept of Motown has encountered some misperceptions in the past. We would like to clear a few things that are sometimes understood as being (not) possible or part of Motown.
Open data
Although Motown is an open source software solution that facilitates standardized data sharing, this does not imply that data is supposed to be shared. It’s up to each Motown user to decide which data to share − if any. The access to any of the data that is handled within the Motown system should be granted by the hosting party. The type and amount of data that is transferred to connected parties is totally in the hands of the owner of the local Motown system.
Business model
Highly accessible to all possible stakeholders, Motown was designed to make the market as open and competitive as can be. Motown’s open source functionality is limited to achieving optimum standard connectivity. Truly marketable added value is to be found in developing new (paid) services on top of the Motown Core. Any business model can be chosen when developing a new service. This is supported by the Apache 2.0 license under which the Motown software is published.
Decentralized system
Motown’s free availability for downloading and installing does not imply the presence of a central Motown system. When downloading the Motown software, one installs a local copy. From this moment on the installed system is completely decentralized and accessible only by you and people you give access to.