Architecting Out Software Intellectual Property Lock-In: A Method to Advance the Efficacy of BBP

Abstract

This paper works to understand Department of Defense (DoD) contracting trends since the beginning of Better Buying Power (BBP). By using data publicly available from the Government-wide Point of Entry (GPE), this paper concludes that there are no clear trends in the levels of competition in the DoD, as measured by ratios of Justifications and Approvals (J&A) to contract awards, as a result of BBP. However, this is not to say that BBP is ineffectual, but that methodologies are still needed to implement the guidance outlined in BBP. To that end, this paper proposes a methodology to identify salient data rights in computer software. Our aim is to provide a means for program managers to understand which data rights are most important to ensure future sustained competition.