VNU Net: Has IBM hijacked Linux? - Gartner warning

"IBM is poised to gain a 'stranglehold' over the Linux community, Gartner warned today. Speaking exclusively to vnunet.com, George Weiss, research director for server and operating systems at Gartner, said: "The biggest problem IBM has is it that appears to the Linux community that it is trying to take over the Linux momentum and grab what this OS has to offer."

"Weiss said he could see a day when "80 per cent of the revenues, indirect or direct, attributed to Linux will go into IBM coffers unless companies like HP, Red Hat and VA Linux smarten up their act. IBM will have a stranglehold on the community."

"IBM told Weiss about its plans for the open source operating system in a meeting this week. "They are aware of the problem. They said they were trying to contribute back to the community and mentioned making the source code for Sash [development software for desktops] for Linux available. IBM people are gracious but they have a business to run. It's a delicate balance."

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