In May 2016 something really great happened: After years of hard work we finally launched Kopano, a new system bringing intuitive communication tools together in one platform. We forked proven, scalable groupware technology from Zarafa and extended it to go beyond traditional groupware with additional apps to provide everything you need in your daily professional life.
Your new stable and reliable communication platform brings high definition WebRTC based video meetings, online synced file access and state-of-the-art groupware technology together, all within a single integrated interface. A single click opens a Web Meeting to present your thoughts in person. Files helps you to easily access the data you want to work on, whether it is stored on a service like ownCloud, a DMS or any sort of WebDAV or CIFS compatible storage solution by making it available in DeskApp or WebApp.
Kopano is 100% Open Source
We follow the discussions about decreasing transparency and accountability from US cloud providers regarding privacy laws and requirements in most countries. The heart of the issue is a monopolistic mindset where these commodity cloud providers seek to earn money twice – once by selling access to their cloud and a second time by collecting data to create a profile of its users.
This is why in our team it has always been important to provide the choice of how to control your data for organisations and users. We think the best way to enable this choice is by delivering our software as Open Source as an antidote to cloud monopolies. We promised to deliver the unique combination of 100% Open Source software with an advanced user experience. This year we have fulfilled both these important fundamental values for 21th century software.
As the CEO of this company, I’m especially proud of our business model. I think we have really found a harmonious approach in having Open Source software whilst keeping a straightforward and transparent business model. We have also built up a strong commercial foundation for working in new markets and with new technology paradigms.
Your privacy is key to our business. We do not just show this with our product. For the last one and a half years, our team has been one of the main contributors to the Iridium Browser project – a technologically up-to-date, chromium-based internet browser which has users’ privacy as its highest priority!
Most of the Zarafa Team is now working on Kopano, so we can ensure the expertise in our new products. We launched our new brand during the Kopano Conference in October. This was positively received by our ecosystem, consisting of many people who have been working with Zarafa for years. We are delighted to keep supporting this many Zarafa customers who are migrating to Kopano with a big smile!
What’s next in 2017?
Last, but not least, we will continue to grow our customer and partner outreach. In 2016, the main events were the Kopano Conference and other partner-centric events. However, in 2017 we will be expanding our presence and visibility to a wider public. In Q1 alone, we will host partner meetups to kick off the new year ánd we’ll be attending FOSDEM, CeBIT, the Univention Summit and the Chemnitzer Linux Tage.
Looking forward to working together in 2017!
Brian Joseph
CEO Kopano
