Towards an evaluation method for software ecosystem practices

Many software ecosystems have achieved success in recent years. Practices adopted by them are responsible for guiding their evolution and keeping the ecosystem health. However, there is not an accepted quality process model, framework or method for evaluating the essential practices that are commonly used in a software ecosystem. This paper proposes an evaluation method for software ecosystem practices and a research plan for developing such a method. We focus on the practices and metrics that can improve various facets of the ecosystem, and contributes to achieving good health for the ecosystem. These practices and metrics are modeled by three views of the ecosystem: community, business and technical. We illustrate an initial representation that summarizes the steps of the method and the identification of key areas that are relevant to the practices.