Write access provisioning and organizational ownership in open source software projects: Exploring the impact on project novelty and survival

Abstract

Non-hierarchical organizational structures have gained popularity as a means to leverage the crowd's innovative potential. However, balancing the generation of new ideas with the long-term sustainability of innovation efforts remains a significant challenge, especially in the context of open-source software (OSS) projects. In the absence of formal authority and contracts, OSS projects rely on governance systems wherein the rights to maintain the project's source code are restricted to a small group of contributors. We argue that restricting write access to the source code for a core group is essential for effectively managing innovation in OSS projects. Specifically, we propose that the proportion of contributors with write access to the source code influences two key outcomes: project novelty and survival. Additionally, given the widespread adoption of OSS development practices by organizations, we examine how organizational ownership influences the relationship between write access provisioning and project outcomes. Analyzing a matched sample of 5762 OSS projects hosted on GitHub, we find that a higher proportion of contributors with write access enhances the project's novelty but reduces the project's survival. This relationship is further influenced by whether or not the project is organization-owned. We attribute these findings to the distinct roles played by contributors: those with write access to the project drive innovation by selecting and integrating new ideas, while those without write access to the project are crucial for ensuring the project's reliability and long-term survival.