“Linux continues its march into the mainstream with Monday’s
announcement that board manufacturer PC Chips will bundle Corel’s
upcoming version of the operating system with all of its
motherboards. PC Chips shipped about 15 million motherboards in
1998, and expects to ship about 20 million in 2000, according to
Corel representatives.”
“The deal is a “validation of the product we’ll release in a few
weeks,” says Kevin McNeil, vice president of OEM sales at Corel.
The company is still beta-testing Corel Linux, but it plans to
officially announce the product November 15 at the Comdex trade
show in Las Vegas…”
“Corel’s deal with PC Chips is also important because it
gives PC manufacturers that buy the motherboards an easy,
cost-efficient alternative to more expensive operating
systems, McNeil says. That option could help stretch the
dwindling profit margins for makers of low-end machines.”