FRAMINGHAM, Mass., Aug. 14 — Linux is making
major inroads as a platform for the future, and is well positioned
to continue to gain market share at the expense of other platforms.
Results from a soon-to-bepublished IDC survey of more than 800
North America and Western Europe server platform decision makers
indicate that end customer spending on Linux-related hardware,
software, services, and staffing will grow to 9% of the IT budget
in 2002, up from only 3% in 1999.
“Although Linux is not yet widely deployed in production
environments, we are seeing signs of significant adoption,” says
Scott McLarnon, study director and group vice president at IDC.
“The willingness of an increasing number of decision-makers to look
closely at Linux bodes well for its future and suggests increasing
challenges for competitive platforms. Many of the hurdles to Linux
adoption are being addressed by platform vendors, and we expect
that competition among operating systems as well as among Linux
vendors will increase dramatically. Only a few vendors have
significant mindshare in the Linux market, indicating major
untapped opportunities for hardware and software vendors alike.
However, Linux marketplace success is not assured. Challenges
remain to be addressed, notably broader availability of software,
skills and trained staff for deploying and managing Linux
environments.”
Key findings include the following:
- Linux buyers are becoming more mainstream within the
corporation - Nearly 40% of respondents are actively using or piloting
Linux - In terms of unit replenishment, Linux is growing twice as fast
as Unix Linux advantages (performance, scalability, value) are
gaining in prominence
IDC will be presenting the results of this comprehensive Linux
survey in a series of five web conferences in August and September.
In conjunction with the web conferences IDC will be releasing three
reports: Overview of Linux Market Trends and Buyer Perceptions,
Linux Operating Environment Hardware Trends, and Linux Operating
Environment Software Trends.
For additional information, contact David Shiang at 508-935-4426
or dshiang@idc.com.
About IDC
IDC delivers dependable, high-impact insights and advice on the
future of ebusiness, the Internet, and information technology to
help organizations make sound business decisions. IDC forecasts
worldwide markets and trends and analyzes business strategies,
technologies, and vendors, using a combination of rigorous primary
research and in-depth competitive analysis. IDC provides global
research with local content through more than 600 analysts in 43
countries worldwide. IDC’s customers comprise the world’s leading
IT suppliers, IT organizations, eBusinesses, and the financial
community. Additional information can be found at http://www.idc.com. IDC is a division of
IDG, the world’s leading IT media, research and exposition
company.
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