Since 1999, the Open Source movement has aroused the interests of different players of the Information Society. M. E. Liikanen, European Commissioner for Enterprise and Information Society, has publicly expressed an interest for more security through the use of Open Source software. Municipalities deployed desktops and servers based on Open Source software in Spain, France, Austria and Belgium. Some health professionals see in this movement a way of obtaining better software, more secure and interoperable. This presentation explores the context and economical considerations at the basis of the Open Source movement, its rationale in a research programme publicly financed and some of the challenges ahead. It concludes on the observations that Open Source is high on several agendas but needs to quickly become an economical activity to deliver its promises.