Directus reposted this
One year ago, we made a tough call at Directus: changing our license from GPL3 to BSL 1.1. It was a decision that kept me up at night... but one that has transformed our business. Here's our story, one year later: Like many open-source projects, we faced a critical challenge: despite saving our customers millions, few large corporations ever contributed back. It's the classic open-source dilemma — create immense value, but struggle to capture enough revenue to keep the lights on and sustain development. We knew something had to change, but we were determined to maintain our open-source values. After months of deliberation, we landed on the BSL 1.1 license. This allowed us to keep Directus free for nearly all users while requiring financial contributions from larger entities. Now, most pricing changes never go well. And that's amplified 10x when you're discussing open source licensing. But our switch went really well — and it's because we didn't make this decision alone: - We opened a GitHub discussion that garnered over 200 replies - Ran Town Hall discussions in our 12k+ member Discord community - Consulted with open-source thought leaders - And involved our community in every step of the way Now, a year later, the results speak for themselves. - We've seen a staggering 200% growth in annual recurring revenue - We've removed all "Cloud Exclusives," benefiting every single user - And contrary to fears, our community contributions and growth have continued unabated This journey has taught us crucial lessons, and reaffirmed a big personal belief of mine: Transparency isn't just nice to have — it's essential. Involving our community in finding solutions turned a potential crisis into an opportunity. We've learned that balance is the key to sustainable open source, and that new models like post-open licenses are gaining traction for good reason. Open source needs new models to thrive long-term. By reimagining our approach, we've managed to boost sustainability without sacrificing our core values. Directus isn't just surviving — it's thriving... and that's a win for everyone who relies on our platform. As we look to the future, I'm more convinced than ever that open-source can be both idealistic and sustainable. It's not an easy path, but it's one worth taking. ✨
My only complaint about the 5M USD threshold is that I find it a bit harsh sometimes, because 5M in Switzerland means different taxes than 5M in Italy, and 5M of income for a product company means different costs than 5M for a marketplace company. In the last year, I have encountered multiple companies that had more than 5M USD of income but were still unable to pay for an enterprise Directus license. Having a “light” license option, maybe without some features, could be a way to engage them too.
Thank you for sharing your experience. We at dotCMS have traveled the whole enterprise open source journey and it seems to me that the BSL offers the best of both worlds - palatable and friendly to community/contributors and as a foundation for building a strong and viable business. It was really informative to hear about how the change helped drive (or at least did not hinder) your growth.
Congratulations on the remarkable transformation over the past year!
Great to hear how this has turned out for you, Ben. It's so easy to get sucked into the tangles of ideological purity vs capitalist maximalism when debating licensing questions. It encouraging that the process allowed you to match yours and the community's values with a solid foundation for ongoing revenue.
You built a beautiful platform. I come across directus couple years ago and just loved it, simplicity, clean design and a good community. Thanks for such awesome product
Great to hear the change went so well and also improved the power you can invest into further development of Directus it self.
Ben thanks for sharing this. I’d love to hear more, we are having a similar approach with our CMS and I’m just so curious to learn from your experience. Are you open to a power-hour? Or a half hour if, and I’m sure it is, your schedule is full.
Chris Hillock I can’t remember who was struggling with this specifically in the group, but these learnings from one of our founders really resonated with the DTC Office Day conversation. Thought I’d relay in case helpful to the attendees from your portfolio facing similar challenges.
x=(2km+P)/n
2wIt was a great decision which made total sense. Is the cap still at 5 bar USD? Looking forward to seeing how the returns keep advancing an already great product!