The Open Group Gold and Silver Memberships
Take an Active Role in Shaping the Future of Open Standards
The Open Group Gold and Silver Membership provide organizations access to vendor-neutral Forums and Work Groups, vendor-neutral environments where members share knowledge and resources, and collaborate on developing open IT standards and certifications. Depending on their membership level, members of The Open Group are entitled to participate in one or more of The Open Group Forums:
- Gold Members are entitled to join any number of Forums and Work Groups open to all members of The Open Group; and also may vote for a representative to the Governing Board
- Silver Members are entitled to join one Forum and any number of Work Groups open to all members of The Open Group. Silver Members may opt for a second Silver Membership if they wish to join another Forum. Those with Silver Membership have a vote in choosing a representative to the Governing Board
Collectively addressing a comprehensive range of technical, business, legal and regulatory issues, each Open Group Forum and Work Group focuses on functional areas of work. With their participation in The Open Group, members are presented with the unique opportunity to:
- Influence industry standards and outcomes that benefit their organizations
- Get early access to information regarding standards and best practices
- Increases sales and customer confidence
- Give customers, vendors, analysts and regulators meaningful assurance that products will work well together
- Understand and influence the competitive environment
- Have access to the relevant knowledge, resources and experience of fellow members
- Network with a world-class community of experts and peers and grow professionally
Take a Leadership Position with an Open Group Gold Membership
The Open Group Gold Membership is for organizations with a broad range of interests and requirements that want to participate in more than one of The Open Group Forums. You will be among distinctive company with current Gold Members from a broad range of industries.
To join The Open Group or upgrade to Gold Membership:
- Download the Membership Agreement form here
- Open the form with Adobe Acrobat Reader (please only use Adobe Acrobat, using other PDF tools will delay membership processing)
- Fill in the form with complete details as possible and sign
- Provide the your complete legal entity name
- Silver Members are entitled to participate in one Forum and any number of Work Groups open to all members of The Open Group. Organizations may opt to participate in an additional Forum obtaining a second Silver Membership for that Forum
- Gold Members may join any number of forums
- Authorized signatory is required; secure digital signatures are acceptable.
- Save in PDF format and email to memberservices@opengroup.org
- Upon our review of the information you provided, one of our business team members will contact you to assist through the membership process
- A copy of the countersigned Membership Agreement and an invoice for the fee will be emailed to you
Join a Distinctive Consortium of Industry Leaders
The Open Group members range from major corporations, government organizations and consortia to universities and private individuals.
Pricing is set in US dollars. All fees quoted are subject to local taxes, as applicable.
- If you are a corporation, your pricing will be based on your revenue
- If you are a government organization, your pricing will be based on the number of employees
- If you are a professor or academic faculty at an accredited college or university, you may qualify for special pricing for academia
Silver Membership
Primarily for organizations with a single interest that can be addressed in one Forum alone. A 25% discount applies to an additional Forum membership fee, should membership of an additional Forum be required.
Pricing per year for corporations
| < $25M |
$25M - $100M |
> $100M |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| IT Supplier | $2,500 | $12,500 | $20,000 |
| IT Customer | $2,500 | $7,500 | $12,500 |
Pricing per year for government
| < 200 staff | 200 staff or more |
|---|---|
| $2500 | $7,500 |
Gold Membership
For organizations with a broad range of interests and requirements who want to participate in more than one forum. Gold Membership provides participation entitlements in all Forums.
Pricing per year for corporations
| < $25M |
$25M - $100M |
> $100M | |
|---|---|---|---|
| IT Supplier | $6,250 | $31,250 | $50,000 |
| IT Customer | $6,250 | $18,750 | $31,250 |
Pricing per year for government
| < 200 staff | 200 staff or more |
|---|---|
| $6,250 | $18,750 |
Upon mutual acceptance of the Terms and Conditions herein, The Open Group enters into a Membership Agreement with you, as the Member.
Definitions
- Membership Agreement: The Agreement executed by The Open Group and the Member through which the Member becomes a member of The Open Group.
- Member: The company or organization that has joined The Open Group in order to participate in the Forums and other activities through execution of the Membership Agreement.
- Forum(s) and Work Group(s): Working entities set up by The Open Group for the benefit of its members.
- Information: Any specifications, drawings, sketches, models, samples, data, computer programs or documentation or other technical or business information in written, graphic or other tangible or electronic form furnished or disclosed to The Open Group or any other party in the course of Membership Meetings, Forums’ or Work Group activities and/or as a result of the Member’s use of such Materials.
- Contribution(s): Information that is provided by the Member in the course of discussions leading to Material to be published by The Open Group.
- Material(s): Standards, specifications, white papers, guides, reports, snapshots, corrigenda, case studies, literature, and other documentation published by The Open Group.
The Open Group Standards Process
Member participation in any Open Group Membership Meetings, Forums’ or Work Group activities shall be governed by The Open Group Standards Process, available here.
Confidentiality and Intellectual Property
To enable open, IPR safe, voluntary, neutral discussions and contributions towards Material to be published by The Open Group, the Member agrees to the following obligations of confidentiality with respect to Information received through participation and to the resulting intellectual property of Contributions made:
- To maintain all Information in confidence, using the same degree of care the Member uses to protect its own proprietary information of like importance, but in no event less than a reasonable degree of care. Information disclosed shall be kept confidential to Members only.
- To disclose Information only to its employees and agents of the Member with a need to know and to require each such employee or agent to comply with the confidentiality terms set out in this Agreement.
- That the provisions set out in these Terms and Conditions shall not apply to Information which:
- Is or becomes a part of the public domain.
- Is demonstrably known to the Member prior to disclosure within the Forums
- Was independently developed by the Member outside of the Membership Agreement.
- Was rightfully obtained by the Member from third parties with no obligation of confidentiality.
- That the obligations of confidentiality set out above shall remain in effect for the duration of the Membership Agreement and five (5) years subsequent to termination thereof.
- That the Information received by the Member is be deemed the property of The Open Group, and shall be returned to The Open Group upon request.
- That the Information contributed by the Member and the resulting published Material is deemed the intellectual property of The Open Group in the protection of all members.
Representation and Warranty
ALL MATERIALS AND INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE OPEN GROUP ARE PROVIDED “AS IS”, AND THE OPEN GROUP MAKES NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE OPEN GROUP BE LIABLE FOR ANY LIABILITY WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE FOR ANY LOSSES OR DAMAGE ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE OPEN GROUP BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL LOSSES INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, CONTRACTS, PRODUCTION OR USE.
The Member acknowledges that because of the special nature of The Open Group it is reasonable for The Open Group to exclude liability as above and for the Member to take measures, including insurance where appropriate, to mitigate or prevent any potential losses that may arise (provided that such measures are not in breach of these Terms and Conditions).
If any third party makes or threatens to make any claim (or if, in the opinion of The Open Group such a claim is likely) that the use by the Member of any Materials or other Information provided by The Open Group infringes any intellectual property right of such third party, The Open Group may, at its option, either secure the Member’s right to continue using the Materials, make the Materials non-infringing or withdraw the Materials on one month’s written notice whereupon the Member shall not be authorized to make any further use of the materials. This sub-clause states the entire responsibility of The Open Group concerning infringement of third party intellectual property rights.
Renewal
The Membership Agreement shall automatically renew upon each anniversary date, at the then applicable fee for Member’s revenue published here, unless terminated in accordance with "Termination" below.
Termination
The Membership Agreement may be terminated:
- By either party giving to the other sixty (60) days notice in writing before any anniversary of the date hereof.
- By The Open Group on written notice to the Member if the Member has committed any material breach of the Membership Agreement and in the case of a breach capable of being remedied, has failed to remedy the breach, within 30 days after the receipt of a written request from The Open Group notifying the Member of such breach.
- By The Open Group on written notice to the Member if the Member fails to pay any sum(s) due to The Open Group under the Membership Agreement and such sum(s) remain unpaid for thirty (30) days after written notice from The Open Group that such sum(s) have not been paid.
- For the avoidance of doubt, termination of the Membership Agreement for any reason shall not entitle the Member to any refund of the annual sum due under the Membership Agreement.
Modification
These Terms and Conditions may be modified by the inclusion by The Open Group of additional requirements or terms on ninety (90) days written notice to the Member. In the event that the Member does not agree to such additional requirements, the Member may resign from The Open Group upon thirty (30) days written notice. The Member shall not be entitled to a refund of membership fees pursuant to such resignation.
Governing Law
The Membership Agreement shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
If any provision of the Membership Agreement is for any reason declared illegal in any country, all other provisions shall remain in full force and effect to the fullest extent permitted by such law.
For the avoidance of any doubt, any such finding of illegality in any country shall not affect the validity of any provisions of the Membership Agreement in other countries.
Notification
The Open Group is required by the National Cooperative Research and Production Act (NCRPA) to notify the US Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission of new members. The Member agrees that execution of this Agreement authorizes The Open Group to fulfill its reporting obligations on the Member’s behalf to U.S. Government as cited in the NCRPA.
