It's pretty obvious to most people that just because open source software is "cheap to buy", that doesn't necessarily mean a low TCO. This article on ElectricNews.net reports on the Irish Government's strategy of adopting open standards and clearly differentiating this from open source software.
The article points out that historically companies like Microsoft have used proprietary formats and standards, but equally notes their move towards a more open approach with technologies such as Web Services and WSE2.0. Personally I think this is a great example of Microsoft and others recognising a trend: Customers are insisting on open standards so that they do not suffer from vendor lock-in (the argument about how standard some of these Microsoft-developed standards are can wait for another day!). This lets us, the systems integrator, focus on solving problems not fighting the technology.