The Adoptium Working Group Reports Significant Momentum for Open Source Java in 2023

Breathtaking licensing changes introduced for many Java users is dramatically increasing interest in fully verified free-to-use Java binaries such as Eclipse Temurin


BRUSSELS, Belgium, March 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Eclipse Foundation, one of the world’s largest open source software foundations, in collaboration with the Adoptium Working Group, today announced significant momentum for the global open source Java ecosystem. This momentum comes in the wake of new licensing fee structures being introduced into the industry. In some cases, enterprises that have paid tens of thousands of dollars are now facing fees of millions of dollars for access to Java.

As a result, the uptake of free-to-use high-quality Java has never been higher. In February 2023 the Eclipse Foundation delivered over 12.3M downloads of Java SE TCK certified and AQAvit quality verified Eclipse Temurin binaries, more than double the number delivered in the same month last year. Eclipse Temurin has also become the default Java option for GitHub Actions, and multiple widely used cloud container images. As the entire open source Java ecosystem continues to experience a Renaissance, millions of developers and large Enterprise users are turning to the Adoptium Marketplace for their open Java runtimes. What’s more, the Adoptium Working Group is welcoming new strategic and enterprise members including Bloomberg, Google, and Rivos.

“In a macroeconomic climate where we are all forced to do more with less, options like Eclipse Temurin mean that businesses have choices for free-to-use quality Java runtimes without having to expend additional resources,” said Mike Milinkovich, executive director of the Eclipse Foundation. “With new members joining every month, the quality and consistency of the Adoptium Working Group’s output will only continue to grow to address that pressure.”

The Adoptium Working Group, which was founded by multiple participants, including many Java developers and vendors such as Alibaba Cloud, Azul, Huawei, IBM, iJUG, Microsoft, and Red Hat, provides the Java ecosystem with fully compatible, high-quality distributions of Java based on OpenJDK source code. For enterprises that rely on Java and wish to ensure an open, community-led future for this important open source option, joining the Working Group represents a critical step in taking control of their own technical destiny.

“2023 is shaping up to be an incredibly productive year for the Adoptium Working Group and for the entire open source Java ecosystem,” said Tim Ellison, PMC Lead for Eclipse Adoptium. “With our focus on secure development practices and high quality deliveries there has never been a better time for organizations to choose a free-to-use Java runtime.”

The Eclipse Adoptium project and the governing Adoptium Working Group are the continuation of the original AdoptOpenJDK mission, which was established in 2017 to address the general lack of an open, vendor-neutral, reproducible build and test system for OpenJDK across multiple platforms. Adoptium is now the leading provider of high-quality OpenJDK-based binaries used by Java developers across embedded systems, desktops, traditional servers, modern cloud platforms, and mainframes. The Adoptium Marketplace extends this leadership role and gives even more organizations a means of distributing their binaries.

If your organization is interested in participating in the Adoptium Working Group, you can view the Charter and Participation Agreement, or email us at membership@eclipse.org. You can also participate as a sponsor; interested parties can view the Sponsorship Agreement. Both membership and sponsorship help assure sustainability.

Supporting Quotes from Adoptium Members:

Azul

“Third-party Java runtimes were already on the rise prior to Oracle’s recent pricing changes, and we expect that trend to accelerate rapidly moving forward,” said Simon Ritter, Deputy CTO, Azul. “Java provides immense value across the DevSecOps lifecycle, but Oracle’s new employee-based pricing is divorced from that value. Customers are increasingly frustrated over what they see as arbitrary pricing changes, audit risks and a lack of overall predictability. Thankfully, drop-in replacements for Oracle abound, and offer a compelling value for Java-based enterprises.”

Red Hat

“As a long term contributor to open source Java SE, Red Hat applauds the sustained growth and uptake of OpenJDK and Temurin throughout modern, business-critical enterprise software solutions,” said Mark Little, VP, Engineering, Red Hat. “Adoptium is a leading example of a community-powered approach to delivering secure, reliable and high-performing open source software. Red Hat’s engagement in the Adoptium Working Group and confidence in the community is reflected in our expanded support offerings that include development and production use cases of Temurin, similar to the award-winning support that comes with the Red Hat build of OpenJDK. We wish Adoptium every continued success.”

About the Eclipse Foundation
The Eclipse Foundation provides our global community of individuals and organizations with a mature, scalable, and business-friendly environment for open source software collaboration and innovation. The Foundation is home to the Eclipse IDE, Jakarta EE, and over 400 open source projects, including runtimes, tools, and frameworks for cloud and edge applications, IoT, AI, automotive, systems engineering, distributed ledger technologies, open processor designs, and many others. The Eclipse Foundation is an international non-profit association supported by over 330 members, including industry leaders who value open source as a key enabler for their business strategies. To learn more, follow us on Twitter @EclipseFdn, LinkedIn or visit eclipse.org.

Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

Media contacts:
Schwartz Public Relations for the Eclipse Foundation, AISBL
Stephanie Brüls / Susanne Pawlik
Sendlinger Straße 42A
80331 Munich
EclipseFoundation@schwartzpr.de 
+49 (89) 211 871 – 64 / -35

Nichols Communications for the Eclipse Foundation, AISBL
Jay Nichols
jay@nicholscomm.com 
+1 408-772-1551