In 2021, several companies shifted their open-source licensing strategies, notably Elastic and Redis, opting for more restrictive licenses like SSPL, which led to dissatisfaction among developers due to increased monetization and reduced freedoms. In contrast, DataStax has maintained a commitment to open-source principles, notably with Apache Cassandra, which remains under the governance of the Apache Software Foundation to prevent vendor lock-in. The company's approach emphasizes shared innovation and flexibility, offering products like Astra DB, which provides managed services without the risk of sudden licensing changes. DataStax prioritizes outcome-driven solutions, ensuring that products like Luna and Astra DB offer scalability and risk management without compromising user control over their deployments. This strategy aligns with enterprise preferences for predictability and flexibility, as evidenced by the State of Enterprise Open Source 2022 report, which highlights a preference for vendors that contribute to open-source projects to avoid unexpected costs and constraints.