A regional Swiss energy service company needed guidance on evaluating open-source software for commercial applications, particularly for assessing a new custom component for Home Assistant, as well as for other potential future projects. Without established processes for assessing open-source solutions, they required a framework to make informed decisions about use, contribution to, and provision of open-source projects while maintaining alignment with business objectives and compliance with legal and community requirements.

The research analyzed existing frameworks and conducted an extensive literature review covering the intricacies of open-source software, such as licensing, costs, security, and community aspects of open-source adoption. A new decision framework was developed incorporating legal, technical, strategic, and economic evaluation criteria. The framework was then applied to assess the implementation of a new Home Assistant custom component from a high-level business perspective.

The new decision framework acts as a blueprint to guide the company in the future and enables the structured evaluation of open-source strategies for profit-oriented business models. Key findings demonstrate that open-source solutions can provide significant cost savings, increased flexibility, and competitive advantages when properly managed, but require careful assessment of licensing obligations, the community, sustainability, and strategic alignment. The framework suggests the use of a utility analysis methodology with weighted scoring across multiple criteria: licensing/legal, cost/ROI, vendor independence, maintainer/support/community, long-term sustainability, technical assessment, security, and strategic positioning. Applied to the case study, the framework recommended against implementing the new Home Assistant custom component due to weak strategic alignment with current business objectives and insufficient ROI potential. The research confirms that successful open-source adoption depends on thorough evaluation considering the organizational context, associated risks, and strategic goals rather than simply pursuing cost reduction benefits.