Episode 129: Per Ploug and the Spotify FOSS Fund

Jul 15, 2022

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Guest

Per Ploug Krogslund

Panelists

Richard Littauer | Ben Nickolls

Show Notes

Hello and welcome to Sustain! The podcast where we talk about sustaining open source for the long haul. Our guest today is Per Ploug Krogslund, who’s the Open Source Tech Lead at Spotify. He’s with us to talk in-depth about the FOSS Fund he’s setting up with Spotify, to pay maintainers of independent projects and give back to open source developers. Go ahead and download this episode now to hear more!

[00:01:30] Per tells us his background, how he got involved with Spotify and open source, and he tells us about the OSPO office at Spotify.

[00:05:46] Ben wonders how the conversation evolved in Spotify about how an OSPO would work there and how he got to be the one person that’s representing the OSPO.

[00:09:47] Per explains the FOSS Fund he’s setting up to give back to open source.

[00:11:50] Richard wonders what Per is doing to make sure that the participation is authentic and aligns to the values of the people who are in those projects beforehand so that he doesn’t come off as an extractive corporate company.

[00:14:22] What is Per doing to make sure there’s enough governance set up where the money is being used with the project to make developer’s lives happy?

[00:15:55] Find out how people working at Spotify are involved in the process of deciding who’s going to receive what they’re supposed to receive, and Per tells us how he’s thinking about next year looking at the success of the program he’s setting up this year.

[00:21:14] When Per is having conversations in Spotify about what the FOSS Funds look like in terms of money, we find out if there’s any other investments that are competing alongside that. Also, is InnerSource a thing inside Spotify?

[00:24:41] Per explains what’s going on with diversity of projects right now and if there’s any thoughts deeper down the dependency stack and helping projects.

[00:28:02] Richard wonders if Per’s supporting projects which go towards Spotify’s larger goals in the long run of different markets and different technologies ensuring faster transmission, and if he’s thinking about the dependencies which he will have in the future and supporting those ecosystems as opposed to individual projects.

[00:32:56] In terms of degrowth and the possibility of having a sustainable Spotify, Richard asks Per’s thoughts on if there’s any room to talk about open source policy. Ben shares his thoughts on a possible direction to take with a cooperative community based project.

[00:39:20] Find out where you follow Per on the web.

Quotes

[00:10:06] “We’re trying to just have a fair relationship with the people we depend on.”

Spotlight

[00:39:50] Ben’s spotlight is fs Timer.
[00:40:35] Richard’s spotlight is Jim Kang and his project, GODTRIBUTES.
[00:41:24] Per’s spotlight is a Spotify project, Basic Pitch.

Credits

Produced by Richard Littauer
Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound
Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound

Special Guest: Per Ploug Krogslund.

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