“While Linux is expected to contribute to Corel’s bottom
line eventually, the troubled software firm is pushing hard to get
Dell or IBM onboard quickly.”
“Faced with declining demand for its legacy graphics and
office-productivity software, Corel Corp. is in dire need of new
revenue streams. Those won’t be coming from Corel’s foray into the
Linux market, experts say – at least not right away.”
“We haven’t yet seen what we would like to see as critical-mass
adoption of Linux on the desktop,” admitted Derek Burney, Corel’s
chief technology officer. “Until that happens, we don’t expect to
see that hockey-stick effect,” in which a graph of revenue growth
resembles a hockey stick in profile.”
“By developing a Linux operating system and Linux versions of
its Office Suite and Draw packages, Corel is gambling that a
desktop market will emerge, fast enough to shore up declining
revenue from its non-Linux lines. This is far from certain.”