On the website I see that it’s open source, but the link there points to a GitHub page that hasn’t been updated in years.
Is there a new GitHub page or is info-beamer not open source anymore?
Thanks!
The info-beamer program running on the Pi has never been open source. It still has some code from the original open source version running on normal desktop linux machines you’ve linked in it, but is has since seen thousands of changes and optimizations. Main reason it’s not open source is that the playback engine is the main USP as no other player on the Pi can handle two displays they way info-beamer does, has seamless/gapless playback of all supported codecs while being fully scriptable.
As a result most that would be possible is “source available”, but I don’t see any real value in that as I’m not interested in contributions or the additional overhead of providing that. And it would likely still end up being used illegally in other, competing, products (like I’ve already seen with the commercial version) with no realistic way for me to stop that. I don’t see value in making that easier.
Sorry, I meant the serve side.
The server side isn’t open source either. What would be your use case?
We’re approaching a customer that right now has 50 screens to manage, but it could bring in hundreds or thousands and the monthly fee to be paid will weight a lot!
A self hosted open source content management would have been perfect! 
Sure that sounds nice, but to be honest: why would info-beamer be offered like that? I’m absolutely not interested in managing an open source project. That sounds like thankless work rather than fun. Then there’s the financial aspect: info-beamer has been able to sustain itself for 10 years because it’s generating income. It’s impossible to provide the continuity and quality of both software and service without having that. Github stars don’t pay rent or wages and opening up everything for free sounds like business suicide[1]. As much as I personally like the idea of everything being open source, I don’t see how that would be sustainable.
Regarding the perceived high costs: If the value of having a screen show some information isn’t worth 25 cents/day, why would anyone even install a 500-2000€ display, whose electricity consumption alone often is similar (assuming a 100W display for 12h/day at 0.25€/kWh)? I feel like info-beamer is undermarketing its value. I guess that’s on me :-). I’m happy to provide you or your customers with more reasons why that’s all well worth it. You know how to contact me 
[1] Funny side note: I’ve been notified that my tiny open source screenshot tool has powered the snapshot feature of two competing services at some point. That’s of course perfectly fine given the license, but shows that providing open source can the thankless: I didn’t even get a postcard.
I think that there’s been a misunderstanding: I’m not asking you to open source Info Beamer, I’ve just asked if it was.
I think that here too there’s been a misunderstanding: I was talking about our side as reseller, not as the final user.
About this, I want to give you my 2 cents: I gotta say that the features that offers for example Samsung with MagicInfo/VXT are something pretty different from InfoBeamer. We’re in difficulty to sell your service while VXT costs not that much more and has better features and better UI. It can also work with non Samsung screens by just adding an external player (or by just using the internal web browser).
Please, don’t take this personally, this doesn’t want to be a judjment, just a point of view. And, by the way, we’ll probably go with InfoBeamer for new customers requests!
No worries. Such feedback is really valuable. Thanks! Regarding the reseller aspect: I suggest you you contact me via email. Happy to learn more by fully understanding your view on all that!
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