“IBM’s endorsement of Linux will enable even more information
systems managers to consider Linux as a viable alternative to other
operating systems, according to Bob Young, who heads privately held
distributor Red Hat Software. Since 1994, Red Hat has been
distributing a CD-ROM containing the Linux operating system and
related applications for about $50. IBM currently plans to
distribute Red Hat’s version with its servers, desktops and
laptops.”
“That vendor, in many cases, is Microsoft (nasd: MSFT). Young is
careful not to call Linux a ‘Windows killer,’ as many hopeful
Microsoft foes have done. But he does admit that his company’s
product competes squarely with the Windows NT server operating
system, and that future growth for Linux could mean slower growth
for Microsoft. ‘They were well on their way to taking a monopoly in
the small server market, if it hadn’t been for a new alternative,’
he says. ‘We don’t think we’re going to take any existing customers
away from Microsoft. But we can capture our share of new users of
applications.'”