That’s what I would describe as “the hopes and dreams of a generation” (of Software Freedom lovers), and is the result of fantastic product definition, branding, genuine user excitement, years of incredible — and largely unsung — work of thousands of Debian developers (not to mention all the upstreams)… and a pretty substantial X factor.

Update: Whenever I talk about this chart in presentations, I always follow up with another chart which puts that incredible rising line in context: Ubuntu vs. Firefox. Interestingly, that chart is looking far less impressive today than it was last year. Which is great news… The rise and rise of Ubuntu is catching up to the star power of Firefox! Wow!

At end June 2007, there were 45 businesses in Australia involved in the provision of digital game development services. These businesses employed over 1,400 people and generated a total income of $136.9m which represented an average of $3m per business.

Total expenses incurred for the same period were $128.5m. Almost two-thirds of this amount was attributable to labour costs ($83.8m).

During 2006-07 digital game development services businesses recorded an operating profit before tax of $8.5m, and an operating profit margin of 6.2%.

Compare and contrast.

It has been incredibly satisfying to ship the report, as this project has been with us in various forms for over a year now. The initial concept came together in July 2006, as I was leaving Canonical to join Waugh Partners, and we announced the project in November 2006 at our (thoroughly over-catered) launch party.

We knew that one of the most significant barriers to Open Source adoption in Australia was the perceived lack of support, but that was always counter to our anecdotal understanding of the industry and community here. We needed numbers.

Many thanks to our sponsors, NICTA, IBM and Fujitsu and supporters OSIA, Linux Australia and the NSW Department of State and Regional Development. Without their help, this may have just been yet another small-target, DIY project — no professional face, no industry credibility, and no impact on the wider business community. Instead, we have a serious resource that our industry and community can use to change the game.

… and that’s what Waugh Partners is focused on in 2008: Changing (and sustaining!) the game for Open Source in Australia. This report is just one of the steps we’re taking towards this goal.

Grab the PDF version of the invitation to send to your clients, business associates, local representatives, etc.